From independence in 1960, Africa has been the cornerstone of Nigeria's foreign policy. Struggle for decolonisation, struggle to dismantle the obnoxious apartheid system and the struggle to maintain the dignity of the Black race all over the world defined Nigeria's foreign policy from independence. This was most noble, given the fact that Nigeria is the most populous Black nation on earth; one out of every five black people is a Nigerian. Due to the nation's Africa policy, Nigeria was a founding member of the Organisation of Africa Unity (OAU) in May 1963 and a major driving force behind the formation of the African Union in 2002.

Soon after the civil war, Nigeria joined the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which turned out to be the most successful Third World cartel in history. Commensurate with the nation's relative political and socio-economic stability, the period of the 1970s to 1980 has been described as the golden age of Nigeria's foreign policy. That was when the Murtala/Obasanjo regime gave concrete expression to the nation's Africa-centred foreign policy. Nigeria stood firmly behind the MPLA liberation movement in Angola, leading to the emergence of its leader, Augustinho Neto as president in the mid 70s.

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