Why Nations Fail to Develop: The Case of Nigeria (1). By Victor E. Dike.
4 min read
Abstract.
This article focuses on the forces that prevent nations from developing politically, socially, and economically or why some of them have failed to achieve their purpose. It draws profusely from two inspiring books: Why Nations Fail and Leading From the Emerging Future to exp lore as to whether or not the political leaders of Nigeria can learn any lesson from the seminal work. The books concentrate on practical approaches that empower political leaders to shift their mind-sets to enable them to transform their extant extractive political and economic institutions that hinder national development. Unlike previous studies on leadership and development in Nigeria, which have observed that the system has been rendered unproductive by poor leadership, this article argues that the problem with Nigeria is that the political leaders have failed to shift their engrained mind-sets from “ego-system awareness to eco-system reality” to enable them to build and maintain effective institutions and infrastructure that drive the economy and develop the nations. It also argues that discussion about the leaders’ mind-set and national development deserves a different approach to transform the nation’s ossified institutions into innovative and creative ones. This will encourage the leaders to collectively shift their mental models to design and implement growth policies that will fit into the 21st-century economy and empower them to lead from the emerging future.
Introduction.
The basic structures of societies are the same as every society has sociopolitical and economic systems as well as educational institutions. But the performances of these institutions and the development of nations vary according to the sociopolitical dynamics of every society. In other words, every case is different because what works in one society may not be effective in another one. Therefore, the transformation of multi-religious and multi-lingual Nigeria and its seemingly chaotic sociopolitical and economic environment require a leader with the skills and knowledge to address the systemic bottlenecks that hinder national development. That will involve changing the structure and “human consciousness” (Scharmer & Kaufer, 2013, p. 240) as well as the “mental models” (Senge, 2006, p. 163) of the political leaders from their engrained “ego-system awareness” into “eco-system reality” (Scharmer & Kaufer, 2013, p. 11).
Although the process seems daunting because of the disordered Nigerian environment, it is not by any means impossible to accomplish with collective mindfulness (Scharmer & Kaufer, 2013) as every Nigerian is a stakeholder in the affairs of the nation. However, Germer, Siegel, and Fulton (2005) have defined “mindfulness,” among other things, as a “moment-by-moment awareness” (p. 6). For Bodhi (2000), mindfulness means having awareness, attention, and remembering. However, to the already crowded definition, Davis and Hayes (2011) have added that “mindfulness is a moment-to-moment awareness of one’s experience without judgment” (p. 198). Yet others have noted that “mindful leaders” are “courageous,” they perceive the “big picture” and “create environments of trust and safety,” which would “ignite innovation” (Moore, 2012, pp. 1-2).
The differing perspectives on the issue of poverty are not new. It was also underscored by various speakers at the 2014Africa Innovation Summit Cabo Verde that no country has overcome the challenges of poverty reduction, and no region will overcome the challenges of development, without proving its ability to be creative and innovative. And Nigeria is not an exception. Nigeria’s leaders appear to have a “fixed mindset” (Dweck, 2007). The nation is choking on its democratic experiment because the leaders do not operate on principles that ally with democracy. Worse still, the system is colored by unbridled corruption, non-functional health care and education systems, and institutions and infrastructure that are antithetical to capacity development. These forces have resulted in a weak economy, rising youth unemployment, and poverty as well as insecurity in the society. The leaders do not seem to understand that empowering the people will change the future of the society. It has been noted that no society can separate poverty from the political and economic forces in the society as well as the mind-set of the leaders because they determine the state of human condition in every nation.
But what is mind-set? According to Webster’s New Collegiate dictionary (1980), mind-set is “a mental inclination, . . . a . . . state of mind” (p. 725). For the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2015), mind-set “is a set of attitudes or fixed ideas that someone has and that are often difficult to change” (para. 1). Meanwhile, for Dweck (2007), professor of psychology at Stanford, mind-set is a set of attitudes, or “mindsets are just beliefs . . . powerful beliefs . . . something in your mind . . .” (2007, p. 16) that need not be so set.
For the author, everyone has either a fixed mind-set or a growth mind-set that can be changed. A fixed mind-set is one in which you view your talents and abilities as well fixed or that your “qualities are carved in stone.” You are who you are, your intelligence and talents are fixed, and your fate is to go through life avoiding challenge and failure (Dweck, 2007). But a growth mind-set, however, is one in which an individual sees his or her mind-set as fluid, a work in progress; that means that our fate is one of growth and opportunity. Furthermore, according to Dweck (2007), mind-sets are not set or “carved in stone” (p. 6) because at any time, any person can learn to use a growth mind-set to achieve success and happiness and that a change of mind is always possible (Dweck, 2007). That is what good leaders (as well as their followers) need for their nations to develop and thrive and for their citizens to reach their full potential. Given the background, a person’s mind-set directs his or her action. That, according to Dweck (2007), means that “The view you adopts for yourself profoundly affects the way you lead your life. It can determine whether you become the person you want to be and whether you accomplish the things you value” (p. 6).
To be concluded next week.
