President Goodluck Jonathan’s Transformation Agenda and Nigeria’s Foreign Policy
Blessing E. N. Thom-Otuya, PhD

Abstract
After the Second World War in 1945, the foreign policy direction of most developing nations was to liberate themselves from the shackles of colonialism and adjusting themselves to the politics of bipolarism. Fifty years after, most African countries have been liberated. The cold war between the western capitalist bloc and the eastern socialist bloc no longer exists. From the fall of the Berlin wall; there was an emergence of a new international relations and challenges. The world was faced with new realities the challenge of bad governance, poverty, civil war, terrorism, environmental degradation, threat of nuclear war, piracy, oil theft, illegal bunkering, proliferation of small arms and light weapons and transnational crimes among others. Nigerians including President Goodluck Jonathan are clamouring for change of Nigeria’s foreign policy direction to meet the emerging trends in the international State system. Nigeria before now has been giving various assistance to African countries without gaining anything. The Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan is a holistic attempt to reform and transform the Nigerian State. The transformation agenda is the articulation of government prioritized policies, programmes and projects that will guide Jonathan’s administration from 2011 to 2015. The Nigerian foreign policy will definitely seek for greater responsibilities. How can her national interest be maximized utilizing the on-going transformation programme? This paper is an attempt to explore the foreign policy of Goodluck Jonathan within the context of the Transformation Agenda; and suggest ways of strengthening Nigeria’s foreign policy. The ultimate goal of the paper is to reposition Nigeria’s foreign policy for a greater role and influence in the international state system.

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