Analysing the Role of Tourism in Post-Conflict Economic Recovery in Borno State, North East Nigeria: An Institutionalist Political Economy Perspective

This study analyses the role of tourism in post-conflict economic recovery in Borno State, North East Nigeria, through an institutionalist political economy lens, contributing an original framework for understanding tourism as a peace-building and recovery instrument in African conflict-affected states. Borno State, as the epicentre of the Boko Haram insurgency, represents a critical case for examining how tourism sectors can be rebuilt, regulated, and positioned within broader post-conflict economic recovery architecture. A qualitative interpretivist research design is adopted with primary data generated through 48 in-depth interviews with state government officials, international development organisation representatives, hotel and hospitality operators, community leaders, and domestic investors across Maiduguri and accessible local government areas. Secondary data sources include recovery plan documents, international donor reports, and hotel sector investment records from 2017 to 2024. Institutionalist political economy analysis examines how formal and informal institutions mediate tourism's contribution to recovery, who benefits from recovery investments, and what political economy dynamics shape resource allocation decisions. Findings reveal that tourism is not explicitly mainstreamed in Borno State's official recovery planning frameworks, creating an institutional gap that suppresses private investment mobilisation in the sector. Informal hospitality economy actors demonstrate adaptive resilience strategies not captured in formal recovery discourse. The study contributes a Post-Conflict Tourism Recovery Institutionalist Framework and generates recommendations for integrating tourism into Nigeria's northeast recovery and stabilisation programmes. Keywords: post-conflict recovery, tourism, institutionalist political economy, Borno State, North East Nigeria