Search

Begin New Search Topic Oil Political Geography Nigeria Publishing Institution Brown Journal of World Affairs Publication Year within 25 Years

1. The Geopolitical Consequences of Oil in Africa: The Case of Nigeria

Author:
Cyril Obi
Publication Date:
06-2020
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Brown Journal of World Affairs
Abstract:
Oil endowment has been a significant factor in Africa’s history, politics, and development. The continent was positioned strategically following the global energy transition from coal to crude oil in the latter part of the nineteenth and early part of the twentieth centuries, which shaped the history of oil in Africa.1 Today, Africa’s oil reserves serve both as a supply of oil to the global market and as a node for the continued integration of the continent’s petro-economies into a volatile global oil market. However, the fortunes of Africa’s oil-producing states depend on a commodity whose price they do not determine, and they find themselves with limited options to collectively leverage their positions on the global stage.
Topic:
Energy Policy, Oil, and Geopolitics
Political Geography:
Africa and Nigeria

2. The Geopolitical Consequences of Oil in Africa: The Case of Nigeria

Author:
Cyril Obi
Publication Date:
03-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Brown Journal of World Affairs
Institution:
Brown Journal of World Affairs
Abstract:
Oil endowment has been a significant factor in Africa’s history, politics, and development. The continent was positioned strategically following the global energy transition from coal to crude oil in the latter part of thenineteenth and early part of the twentieth centuries, which shaped the history of oil in Africa.1 Today, Africa’s oil reserves serve both as a supply of oil to the global market and as a node for the continued integration of the continent’s petro-economies into a volatile global oil market. However, the fortunes of Africa’s oil-producing states depend on a commodity whose price they do not determine, and they find themselves with limited options to collectively leverage their positions on the global stage. This article explores the geopolitical consequences of the imminent energy transition from oil to non-carbon and renewable sources of energy for Africa’s largest oil producer and exporter: Nigeria. It argues that the growing use of non-carbon and renewable forms of energy will impact African oil producers negatively, particularly in relation to economic growth, national stability, and diminished international influence. The potential impact of a global energy transition for Nigeria is significant for a continent whose oil producers include Algeria, Angola, Chad, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Libya, and South Sudan—particularly when grappling with its emerging implications. This transi- tion assumes greater importance in the face of new oil discoveries in other Afri- can countries such as Ghana, Mauritania, Mozambique, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. The new oil discoveries have revived the debate over the implications of the geopolitics of oil in Africa, as well as in an energy-hungry world that is simultaneously caught in a “global energy dilemma.”2
Topic:
Oil, Geopolitics, Energy, and Energy Transition
Political Geography:
Africa and Nigeria