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At the Azikiwe memorial conference held at Lincoln University near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in late April 1998, a longstanding observer of Nigerian politics pointedly informed the Nigerian ambassador to the United States that the so-called Federal Republic of Nigeria was in fact neither federal nor a republic. The remark was met with rowdy applause from the migrant/exile audience. It was certainly accurate at the time, but not even the audience could know for how much longer. While it is perhaps still premature to celebrate, by virtue of the recent elections Nigeria is once again at least nominally a republic in the Latin sense—res publica —a thing of the people. As for Nigerian federalism, Ali Mazrui's characterization seems accurate: It is "alive, but not well," and the recent elections do not augur well for its recovery.

AbstractAs the range of actors, issues and levels of negotiation at the COP26 meeting in Glasgow demonstrates, the defining feature of global governance today is pluralism. Geopolitics, including swings in US global leadership and surging US–China competition, are part of the picture, but do not adequately explain the complexity of contemporary multilateralism. Deeper, systemic forces are at work – the birth pains of a more plural global system. This article identifies and examines four dimensions of pluralism: multipolarity, multiple issues, multi‐level governance, and multiple stakeholders. The effect is that all states – including middle and small states – must be more active, more agile, more self‐reliant, more willing to lead, and more oriented towards issues than ideology. The article illustrates the four dimensions through reviews of multilateral responses to COVID‐19, cyber attacks, and mass migration, before asking how states and non‐state actors can effectively manage a more plural system of governance. Three capacities for success are discussed: to act early and decisively by finding partners and fora for success; to embrace adhocracy internally and externally; and to rebalance effectiveness and trust through greater technocratic expertise, transboundary scientific cooperation, and a more inclusive diplomacy.

Dreizehn kurze Beiträge befassen sich schwerpunktmäßig mit der jüngsten politischen Entwicklung in Nigeria seit dem neuerlichen Übergang zur Demokratie von den Kommunalwahlen 1998 bis zu den Präsidentschaftswahlen 1999 (tabellarische Ergebnisübersicht aus den Einzelstaaten S.6). Der Frage, inwieweit demokratische Wahlen die Herrschaftsstrukturen des alten Systems wirklich aufbrechen können, wird ebenso nachgegangen wie Problemen des ethnischen Regionalismus und einem angestrebten Wandel der institutionalisierten Machtverteilung. Die Zukunft der föderalen Struktur Nigerias und Aspekte der politischen Ökonomie bilden weitere Schwerpunkte neben einem kritischen Resümee von Wahlkampfbeobachtern 1998 und 1999 sowie einer Betrachtung über das Interesse der westlichen Welt an den Wahlen bzw. der Demokratie in Nigeria. Die Situation der nigerianischen Presse und die Bildung politischer Parteien während der Übergangsphase finden in den Darstellungen ebenso Berücksichtigung wie Aspekte des öffentlichen Bewusstseins (kollektives Gedächtnis und selektiver Gedächtnisverlust) in der jüngsten nigerianischen Geschichte, Perspektiven der wirtschaftlichen Entwicklung sowie die Fortschritte zivilgesellschaftlicher Organisationen. (DÜI-Ply)