AFFRIKA Journal of Politics, Economics and Society

South Africa and Nigeria are both regarded as regional 'giants' having real or perceived capacity to play strategic roles in Africa's political-economic settings. On one hand, South Africa's dominance in Africa's political-economic transformation since 1994 is reflected mostly in its business expansion in Africa. Nigeria, on the other hand, remains significant having only just been upstaged by South Africa as Africa's largest economy, and with the huge market its population provides for investors. Notwithstanding intermittent diplomatic altercations between both countries, there has been rising trade and investment relations between the two regional powers especially since the post-apartheid era. However, this is tilted in favour of South Africa because of its more capitalized economy and significant strength in trade investment in Africa. This skewed economic relationship between both regional powers has given South Africa a major trade and investment advantage over Nigeria which also reflects in the recurring political rivalry between both countries. The authors stress that South Africa’s economic incursion and dominance in the continent furthers a growing perception of its regional hegemonic and sub-imperial power aspirations which is becoming more real than imagined.

This paper explored the extent to which successful diplomacy relies on the concept of ripeness by reviewing relevant literature. In view of determining the extent to which successful diplomacy relies on the concept of ripeness, the 2011 Libyan uprising and the 2008 Djibouti–Eritrean border dispute were analysed. The conclusion is that, sometimes, the two concepts that underpin the consolidated theory of ripeness may not necessarily hold. As seen in the Djibouti– Eritrean border conflict, sometimes, readiness is achieved not because the parties conclude they have reached the mutual hurting stalemate but because the mediator points this out and through one of the conflicting party’s motivation and optimism (willingness). This shows that parties may not reach ripeness or readiness at the same time.

Many developing countries continue to experience stunted economic growth, partly traceable to the amount of money expended to subsidize energy consumption. Recently, there is a deepening discourse on the need for a policy shift towards the removal of oil subsidies in developing countries, particularly in Nigeria. This would ensure fiscal discipline and enable funds allocation to other cogent economic sectors. However, there is compelling evidence showing that subsidy removal engenders socio-political and economic contradictions in developing countries. Drawing lessons from other countries, the paper critically assesses fuel subsidy reform in Nigeria, examines its impact and evaluates the mechanisms employed to alleviate its negative effect on the poor. Although, there is a global trend towards oil subsidy removal, attempt at deregulation of the downstream oil sector has negatively impacted on the political economy of Nigeria. Instead of driving the developmental agenda of the state, the subsidy reform has deepened massive impoverishment, created socio-economic instability and political dissent.