<P> Nation - building is constructing or structuring a national identity using the power of the state . It is thus narrower than what Paul James calls "nation formation", the broad process through which nations come into being . Nation - building aims at the unification of the people within the state so that it remains politically stable and viable in the long run . According to Harris Mylonas, "Legitimate authority in modern national states is connected to popular rule, to majorities . Nation - building is the process through which these majorities are constructed ." </P> <P> Nation builders are those members of a state who take the initiative to develop the national community through government programs, including military conscription and national content mass schooling . Nation - building can involve the use of propaganda or major infrastructure development to foster social harmony and economic growth . </P> <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>

Essay on role of youth in nation building wikipedia