International Journal of Sub-Saharan African Research (IJSSAR)

Background: China has become one of Nigeria's most important economic and strategic partners through expanding trade, investment, infrastructure development, and bilateral cooperation. Despite these growing engagements, Nigeria continues to face persistent security challenges, including terrorism, insurgency, banditry, kidnapping, and other forms of violent conflict. Although China has supported Nigeria through limited security cooperation, its longstanding foreign policy principles of non-interference and non-intervention have constrained its involvement in addressing Nigeria's internal security challenges.
Objective: This study examined the nature of China's economic and strategic engagement with Nigeria and its implications for the country's security challenges.
Method: The study adopted a documentary research design, drawing on secondary data from academic publications, policy documents, government reports, and other relevant documentary sources. Data were analysed using thematic and content analysis to identify recurring patterns and emerging themes. Results: The findings indicate that while China has provided security-related assistance to Nigeria in the form of military equipment, intelligence support, and the training of security personnel, its overall engagement has remained predominantly economic. Consequently, China's contribution to addressing Nigeria's complex security challenges has been limited, with security cooperation receiving considerably less attention than trade, investment, and infrastructure development.
Conclusion: The study concludes that, despite the strategic partnership between China and Nigeria, addressing Nigeria's security challenges has not been a central priority in bilateral relations, largely due to China's adherence to its policy of non-interference in the domestic affairs of partner states.
Unique Contribution: The study contributes to the literature on China–Africa relations by providing a nuanced understanding of the imbalance between China's extensive economic engagement and its relatively limited security cooperation with Nigeria, thereby highlighting an underexplored dimension of bilateral relations.
Key Recommendation: The study recommends that Nigeria and China strengthen their strategic partnership by renegotiating existing cooperation frameworks to incorporate more robust security collaboration, while respecting the sovereignty and foreign policy principles of both countries. Enhanced intelligence sharing, capacity building, and institutional cooperation should complement existing economic partnerships to address Nigeria's evolving security challenges more effectively.