Insurgency and Natural Resource extraction in Nigeria: theoretical and empirical linkages Nigeria

Abstract

This paper seeks to establish a theoretical and empirical linkage between insurgency and natural resource extraction in Nigeria. It notes that owing to the weakness of the Nigerian state and the lack of political will to address the underlying causes of the insurgency in the country, armed insurgents have taken control of many of the country’s extractive processes. This results in massive resource theft and creates an allure for the spread of theatres of insurgency across the country. This has partly been responsible for Nigeria’s abysmal oil production per day and earnings from oil, despite the country's increased production quota by OPEC due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Dwelling on the frustration-aggression and relative deprivation theories, the paper concludes that ungoverned artisanal resource extraction remains a source of insecurity in Nigeria and recommends, among others, that the Nigerian state should develop the political will to address insurgency and its drivers in the country.