Enhancing Rural Development in Nigeria : Periscoping the Impediments and Exploring Imperative Measures

Abstract

The rural sector of Nigeria has not witnessed significant level of development in the past 52 years of the nation’s independence. This is evidenced in the apparent lack of basic infrastructural facilities and abysmal poor quality of life in the rural areas. This situation is so inspite of the contributions of the rural sector to the overall national development. It is this noted worrisome situation and the necessity for addressing the problem that inspired the need to carry out this study. In carrying out the study, we had as our basic objectives, to generally overview the underdevelopment state of the Nigeria rural areas and its implications, to thoroughly examine the impediments to the realization of meaningful rural development in the country and to explore the necessary or imperative measures to enhance the development of this very important sector of the Nigerian society. In gathering the data for the study, we relied mainly on secondary sources of information or data gathering and, consequently, adopted content analysis technique in our analysis. The basic findings are that there is no significant emphasis on pro rural development policies. Very critical again is that even the few formulated ones are not being effectively implemented. There is, as well, ineffective political representation of the rural areas particularly as it relates to articulating and attracting development projects and programs. Measures considered imperative for the realization of meaningful enhancement in the development state of the rural areas include the need for government to pay serious attention to developing and ensuring effective implementation of rural development projects and programs. As well, the political representatives from the various rural areas of the country need to be involved in articulating relevant rural development programs for their constituencies and following them up with adequate monitoring to ensure effective implementation by government. The local governments should equally have to focus their activities towards carrying out their statutory role of initiating and executing rural development projects and programs.