I want to share a few thoughts on Toba Alabi’s interesting essay, “Yusuf Bangura’s Visit to Nigeria: A Call for a New Paradigm in Assessing Africa’s Development” calling for a new approach to the study of Nigeria and Africa in general, using my reflections on our recent visit to Nigeria as an anchor.
I’ve been impressed by the strong interest and largely positive reactions that my travelogue has generated, especially among Nigerians. I’ve received or seen more than 30 responses to the essay.
Interestingly, my 22-page academic paper on Nigeria’s troubled politics and development, which I first circulated after the Nigeria trip, has not elicited anything close to the reactions I’ve received on the travelogue, even though I consider the academic paper more thoughtful, empirically-grounded and pointed than the travelogue.
Is this an indication of Nigerians’ weariness with articles about the country’s debilitating politics? Or is it a general…
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