AFRICAN GROWTH AND OPPORTUNITY ACT AND POLITICS OF TEXTILE PRODUCTION IN NIGERIA, 2000-2012.
ABSTRACT
This study evaluated the impact of the implementation of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) on the development of Nigeria’s textile industry, particularly the export of Nigerian textiles and apparels to United States of America. It adopted the qualitative descriptive research methodology for its data generation and analysis. It anchored analysis on the framework of complex interdependence which refers to the various, complex transnational connections and inter-dependencies between states and societies and also among states. Flowing from its hypotheses, the study found that overall African export of textiles and apparels to the US has improved since the implementation of AGOA but that in the specific case of Nigeria the increase has been marginal at best. It further found that dependence of the Nigerian state on oil rents accounts for her failure to maximize access to the US textile market under the AGOA framework. The study therefore recommends the development of indigenous technology base for the exploration and exploitation Nigeria’s vast natural resources; the refocusing of attention from such bilateral contraptions as AGOA to a more self-reliant industrialization that would help meet domestic product needs while at the same time position the country to be more competitive in the global political economy.