<P> In the modern era, nation - building referred to the efforts of newly independent nations, notably the nations of Africa but also in the Balkans, to redefine the populace of territories that had been carved out by colonial powers or empires without regard to ethnic, religious, or other boundaries . These reformed states would then become viable and coherent national entities . </P> <P> Nation - building includes the creation of national paraphernalia such as flags, anthems, national days, national stadiums, national airlines, national languages, and national myths . At a deeper level, national identity needed to be deliberately constructed by molding different ethnic groups into a nation, especially since in many newly established states colonial practices of divide and rule had resulted in ethnically heterogeneous populations . </P> <P> However, many new states were plagued by tribalism; that is, rivalry between ethnic groups within the nation . This sometimes resulted in their near - disintegration, such as the attempt by Biafra to secede from Nigeria in 1970, or the continuing demand of the Somali people in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia for complete independence . In Asia, the division of British India into India and Pakistan was in part due to ethnic differences, which might have been aided by other factors like colonial mismanagement of the situation . The Rwandan genocide as well as the recurrent problems experienced by the Sudan can also be related to a lack of ethnic, religious, or racial cohesion within the nation . It has often proved difficult to unite states with similar ethnic but different colonial backgrounds . Whereas some consider Cameroon to be an example of success, fractures are emerging in the form of the Anglophone problem . Failures like Senegambia Confederation demonstrate the problems of uniting Francophone and Anglophone territories . </P> <P> Traditionally, there has been some confusion between the use of the term nation - building and that of state - building (the terms are sometimes used interchangeably in North America). Both have fairly narrow and different definitions in political science, the former referring to national identity, the latter to infrastructure and the institutions of the state . The debate has been clouded further by the existence of two very different schools of thought on state - building . The first (prevalent in the media) portrays state - building as an interventionist action by foreign countries . The second (more academic in origin and increasingly accepted by international institutions) sees state - building as an indigenous process . For a discussion of the definitional issues, see state - building, Carolyn Stephenson's essay, and the papers by Whaites, CPC / IPA or ODI cited below . </P>

Contribution of martyrs is very important for the nation building why