Law and Nigeria's Development: How to Strengthen the Efficacy of Law for Development in Nigeria

Abstract

In today's world, the role of law transcends the maintenance of social order and administration of justice. Law has a crucial role to play in the developmental processes of states. Nigeria, a country now reputed to be the poverty capital of the world, is in dire need of development. Law can aid Nigeria's quest towards development. This study addresses the question what is development and makes an attempt to offer a holistic notion of the concept. In appraising the relevance of law in Nigeria's developmental process, the study examined instances where the law was employed to enable development, either through the facilitation of indices of development or through the inhibition of impediments to development. Additionally, the study interrogated the nexus between the law and development policy in Nigeria, and appraised the role of law in Nigeria's development process. Prescriptively, the study suggested ways in which the relevance of law in Nigeria's development process can be supplemented, namely prioritisation of the development question in law-making, execution and interpretation; promoting the realisation of socio-economic rights; and the mainstreaming of customary law as an integral part of the law and development discourse.