Federalism in Nigeria: Issues, Challenges and the Way Forward

Abstract

The study investigated Federalism in Nigeria: Issues and Challenges.To achieve this purpose, Survey research design was adopted. This design was found suitable because it involves using a self-designed questionnaire in collecting data from the respondents. The Population of the study consisted of all the respondents in Akwa Ibom State. A sample of 200 respondents was selected using purposive sampling technique. The Instrument used for obtaining data was a researcher developed instrument entitled “Practice of Federalism Questionnaire (PFQ)”. The instrument was given face validation by experts. In order to establish the reliability of the instrument, a pilot study was carried out on a sample of 30 respondents using a test-retest method. Data generated from the study were analyzed using mean, standard deviation and t-test analysis for both research questions and t-test respectively. The results of the findings showed that there is a significant influence of Federalism in Nigeria: Issues and Challenges based on resource allocation, inter-ethnic competition and inter-governmental relations. Based on the findings, it is recommended among others that there should be a review of Revenue Allocation Formulae to emphasize the Derivation Principle and allocation of larger percentage of resources to states, there should also encourage and facilitate dialogue among ethnic leaders and civil society organizations to address grievances and promote peaceful coexistence. Finally,there should consider devolving more powers to the state and local governments, allowing them to have greater control over matters that directly affect their communities. This promotes local governance and development.