INTERNATIONAL

Cross-border child maintenance has become an increasingly complex legal issue as rising migration, international marriages and family breakdowns create situations where a parent resides outside the jurisdiction responsible for enforcing a child’s right to maintenance. Although international instruments such as the 1989 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the 1990 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child affirm this right, enforcement remains inconsistent, particularly in Nigeria. The central problem addressed in this study is the persistent gap between the legal recognition of child maintenance as a right and the practical ability of custodial parents to enforce that right when the obligor lives abroad. The aim of this study is to critically assess the international, regional, and domestic frameworks governing the cross-border enforcement of child maintenance, with particular reference to Nigeria. Using a doctrinal method based on statutes, case law, treaties, and academic literature, the paper examines the extent to which Nigerian law accommodates international obligations and identifies legal, procedural, and institutional obstacles. Findings show that Nigeria’s dualist approach to treaty ratification limits the domestic effect of international maintenance conventions, including the Hague 2007 Child Support Convention. Although domestic laws such as the Child Rights Act and Matrimonial Causes Act provide strong protections, they lack cross-border applicability. Additionally, the absence of a central authority, limited judicial expertise in private international law, bureaucratic delays, gendered socio-economic inequalities, and fragmented mechanisms for enforcing foreign judgments pose challenges. The study recommends comprehensive reforms, including domestication of relevant conventions, creation of a central enforcement authority, harmonisation of family laws, enhanced judicial capacity, and gender-responsive mechanisms to safeguard children’s financial rights across borders.

The emergence and growth of social media in the international community have been nothing short of transformative, impacting various aspects of the international society. It has connected people, facilitated businesses, empowered activists, influenced political discourse, and even reshaped diplomatic practice. One cannot deny but agree that social media are becoming more and more relevant for contemporary societies, this is because they constitute the main sources of information for an increasing number of citizens. They have risen to become essential communication tools for governments, diplomatic personnel, international organizations, and all actors populating the current international system.1 States use it as tools to project power, by spreading manipulated information or fake news or to libel individuals or institutions working in crucial sectors. Both authoritarian and democratic leaders tend to utilize social media quite often especially in this age of advanced technology and interconnectedness.

Soft power is a term that has gained prominence in the study of international relations and diplomacy over the past few decades. Coined by political scientist Joseph Nye in the late 1980s, soft power refers to the ability of a country to shape the preferences and behaviors of other countries through attraction and persuasion rather than coercion or payment. Unlike hard power, which relies on military might or economic leverage, soft power draws upon cultural appeal, values, and diplomacy to foster goodwill and build lasting relationships between nations. In today's globalized and interconnected world, the role of soft power in diplomacy has become more crucial than ever. It shapes international perceptions, influences global public opinion, and helps countries advance their interests without resorting to force 3 . Soft power derives its legitimacy from a country’s values, institutions, and foreign policy. The instrument for mobilizing a country’s soft power abroad is public diplomacy, and therefore the state features prominently in projecting soft power abroad. This power of persuasion is based on intangible resources such as the attractiveness of an international actor’s culture and values.

This study was concerned with the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) in Nigeria and specific stakeholders in the Nigerian financial landscape. This study adopted a cross-sectional survey design. The population consisted of 500 investors and accountants in Benin City and a sample size of 225 investors in publicly listed companies and accountants which was selected using convenience sampling techniques enabling easy gathering of primary data with minimal resources. The hypotheses were tested using analysis of variance (ANOVA). The findings from the study shows that the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) has a significant impact on the quality of investment decision-making in the Nigerian financial landscape, that there is need for improvement in the roles played by regulatory bodies in the implementation of IFRSs in Nigerian financial landscape, and that the accounting profession and academia play a crucial role in developing competent accountants for the proper implementation of IFRSs in Nigerian financial landscape. Based on the findings, recommendations were made, such as formulation and enforcement of comprehensive regulations for IFRSs implementation by government regulatory agencies, the accounting profession should be primarily involved in development of accountants knowledgeable in IFRSs, and ensuring compliance with the IFRSs by the preparers of financial statements. This can enable Nigeria to leverage the full benefits of adopting and implementing international Financial Reporting Standards in Nigeria. The findings of this study also confirmed some previous studies.