International Journal of Law, Humanities & Social Science Volume 2, Issue 2 (December 2017), Pp. 67-91 ISSN (ONLINE):2521-0793; ISSN (PRINT):2521-0785 www.ijlhss.com 67 | Page NIGERIAN OIL ECONOMY: SOME LESSONS FOR CYPRUS* Professor Kaniye S.A. Ebeku (Pioneer Dean of Law, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria) Abstract: Oil/hydrocarbons is still the greatest source of energy in the world. Although its importance is diminishing with the development of alternative/environment-friendly sources of energy such as wind-power and solar energy, it is the case that the pre-eminent position of oil as a source of energy will remain so for some time to come. For most oil-producing countries, oil revenue is a significant source of income. For instance, this is the case in Nigeria, whose economy depends heavily on oil revenue. Even so, oil can also be a curse as it may cause poverty in the country, breed corruption, precipitate human rights abuses and other contradictions. This is the experience of some oil-producing countries such as Nigeria, Libya, Ecuador, and Algeria. The recent discovery of hydrocarbons in Cyprus is surely an important development for the country. However, given the negative experience of other oil-rich countries it is important to explore the possible lessons Cyprus may learn from such experience that could help her maintain a healthy economy when oil revenue starts rolling in as projected, in 2022. This is the central objective of this paper and will be pursued using Nigeria as a case- study. Importantly, the Cyprus economy without oil revenue is strong and healthy; income is derived from diverse sources such as tourism, services and agriculture. This article suggests that Cyprus should learn from the experience of Nigeria and avoid abandoning other sources of revenue when oil revenue starts rolling in so that it would not suffer ‘Dutch Disease’. Moreover, from the experience of Nigeria, Cyprus should take precautionary steps to check oil industry related corruption, internal conflicts and other paradox which hydrocarbon could bring about. In the end, the article recommends that the Cyprus economy should remain diversified in order to ensure sustainable prosperity Key words: Cyprus, Nigeria, oil, oil revenue, oil curse, rescission, diversified economy Research Area: Sociology Paper Type: Conceptual Paper 1. INTRODUCTION Oil is still the greatest source of energy in the world today, and this has been so for well over 60 years and would probably remain so in the medium to long term, despite the increasing use of alternative/renewable energy sources such as solar energy and wind-power. Importantly, most modern machineries, facilities and vehicles upon which development and human comfort heavily depend are powered by oil/hydrocarbons or other by-products of petroleum. This underscores the domineering importance of oil in the world. For oil producing countries in particular, oil revenue is undoubtedly a veritable source of revenue to the national economy. On the contrary, oil can also become a curse or a paradox – for example, resulting in poverty, human rights abuses and conflicts. In fact, the struggle for the control of oil has caused internal conflicts, civil wars, international and proxy wars in some parts of the world. A good case in point is the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 which is widely regarded as a war to control the vast oil resources of the country (Bassil, 2012; Amin, 2014). A major development in Cyprus in recent times was the discovery of hydrocarbons in its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). This raises a great hope for a new and potentially