Question

Difficulty: HardFormulation and Evolution of Nigeria's Foreign Policy Across Regimes

In 1987, Nigeria attempted to expand its diplomatic influence beyond traditional Non-Aligned Movement structures by convening the Concert of Medium Powers (popularly known as the Lagos Forum). Which military administration formulated this initiative, and who served as the Minister of External Affairs responsible for its conceptualization?

  1. The General Ibrahim Babangida administration, under External Affairs Minister Bolaji AkinyemiAnswer
  2. B
    The Major-General Muhammadu Buhari administration, under External Affairs Minister Ibrahim Gambari
  3. C
    The General Olusegun Obasanjo military administration, under External Affairs Minister Joseph Garba
  4. D
    The Alhaji Shehu Shagari administration, under External Affairs Minister Ishaya Audu

Answer

The General Ibrahim Babangida administration, under External Affairs Minister Bolaji Akinyemi
The Concert of Medium Powers (Lagos Forum) was formulated in 1987 under the military administration of General Ibrahim Babangida. Spearheaded by External Affairs Minister Professor Bolaji Akinyemi, the initiative aimed to unite significant regional powers across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America to foster global conflict resolution and non-aligned multilateralism.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the historical foreign policy milestone referenced in the question.
The Concert of Medium Powers (also known as the Lagos Forum) was introduced in March 1987.
Establishing the precise timeframe (1987) narrows the candidate Nigerian regimes.
2
Correlate the timeframe with the head of state and Minister of External Affairs in office.
General Ibrahim Babangida assumed power in August 1985, and Professor Bolaji Akinyemi served as External Affairs Minister from 1985 to 1987.
Akinyemi proposed the Lagos Forum as a strategy of 'constructive interaction' among influential middle-tier nations to mediate global tensions during the late Cold War period.

Key Concept

Regime-specific foreign policy evolution and major diplomatic initiatives under Nigerian military rule
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