Rural Development In Nigeria Research Articles

Public Finance and Rural Development in Nigeria: Empirical Evidence from the Structural Equation Modeling

This study looks at the Nigerian public finance system and the quality of life in rural areas. Specifically the study aims at assessing the implementation and elements leading to the constraints to rural investment in those infrastructural facilities that help in improving or enhancing the quality of rural life in Benue state Nigeria. Data was gathered from nine local government areas in Benue state. Two-hundred and seventy questionnaires (270) were distributed (i.e. Thirty questionnaires duly distributed to each selected local government) and a total of two-hundred and forty-two were returned. A comparative methodological approach of multiple-regression analysis and the structural equation modeling (SEM) was adopted. Findings of the SEM analysis revealed that public finance in rural areas of the selected sample size in Nigeria has not been effective and efficient in all ramifications. While the result from the regression model established that, the five key indices used in the study established poor respective outcome. These were found to be due largely from the joint account system between the state/local government which poses serious challenge when it comes to the issue of financing rural infrastructural projects and other social amenities. The study recommends among others the need for a newly architected public finance system in local governments in Nigeria and this should be directed in a way and manner that will be efficient and prudent to move the developmental prospects of the local governments in the rightful direction in Nigeria.

Community-Based Natural Resources Management and Rural Development in Nigeria: A Theoretical Review

Community-Based Natural Resources Management and Rural Development in Nigeria: A Theoretical Review

Effect of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises MSMEs in Sustainable Rural Development in Nigeria

The study investigated whether Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises could accelerate sustainable rural development in Nigeria. Through conceptual, theoretical and empirical reviews of existing literature and statistical analyses, the results provide empirical evidence on the relationship of MSMEs and rural development. The study adopted a sample of 336 small business owners that operate in the rural areas of Ihiala, Ogbaru and old Aguata LGAs of Anambra State of Nigeria. The study tested two hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. A percentage frequency and OLS regression technique were employed for data analyses. The results showed that government involvement has no significant effect on MSMEs development in the Anambra State of Nigeria, Furthermore, the development of MSMEs has29% significant effect on rural development in Anambra State. The study, therefore, infers that the development of MSMEs is capable of opening up rural areas in a developing economy like Nigeria. Increased business start-ups, use of indigenous technologies, business and customer growths are small business enhancing features that can be improved to achieve sustainable rural development in Nigeria.

Rural entrepreneurship and rural development in Nigeria

Rural entrepreneurship can help develop rural areas through good management of the local resources. Within the framework of integrated rural development theory, this study attempts to determine the perceptions of rural entrepreneurs on the nature and role of entrepreneurship in rural economic development. The study adopted the survey and descriptive design. The researchers randomly selected 200 rural entrepreneurs from five towns in Oyi Local Government Area. The major source of data was primary data, though secondary data such as journals, textbooks and Internet materials were also consulted. A 24-item questionnaire of strongly agree, agree, disagree and strongly disagree was designed and administered. Findings showed that rural entrepreneurship can help increase output, create employment and reduce rural urban migration among other things. However, rural entrepreneurs are faced with certain challenges such as insufficient funds and lack of government support. Based on these findings, the researchers recommended that rural areas should be made attractive and government should create enabling environments for rural entrepreneurs through their policies and other assistance.

Public Policy Instruments and Dynamics of Economic Development Indicators in Rural Nigeria

Abstract This paper focuses on rural economic development that seems grossly reported, neglected and underinvested in Nigeria despite various acclaimed public policies that the sector holds the key to sustainable economic development of the nation. Analysis of the 55 years of sectoral performance appraisal of the Nigerian economy in relation to sustainability is not comprehensive and instructive if it is devoid of a review of development policies that are public and rural driven. This paper therefore, addresses the dynamics, challenges and prospects of public policy instruments as indicative of rural economic development and performance indicators in the overall discourse on sustainable rural economic development in Nigeria. The paper adopted a qualitative approach to show evidences of performance indicators in rural areas in Nigeria. It concludes that public policies have assisted in accelerating the pace of rural development in Nigeria and the impact cannot be wished away for whatever reasons. The paper recommended that, public policies on rural economic development must be community driven, environmental friendly in implementation, social capital impacted and guided by deliberative civic engagement to enhance the buy-in attitude of rural dwellers.

Revenue generation and rural development in Nigeria: a case study of Bende and Ikwuano local government area in Abia state

In Nigeria, corruption has hindered the development of local government areas. This study critically evaluated tax collection as the source of revenue generation and its impact on rural development. In order to achieve this, multiple regressions were used to analyse the data. The results show that total tax collected has a positive relationship with revenue generated. The provision of social amenities has an inverse relationship with total tax collected. Granger causality test underscore the uni-directional causality from revenue generation and provision of social amenities. Therefore, all should endeavour to pay their taxes. Government should provide all the necessary amenities and make available financial services to the people. This will enhance their contributions to economic, social development and overall gross domestic product.. The implication is that there will be improved standard of living, self reliance and eradication of poverty in the country.

Revenue generation and rural development in Nigeria: a case study of Bende and Ikwuano local government area in Abia state

In Nigeria, corruption has hindered the development of local government areas. This study critically evaluated tax collection as the source of revenue generation and its impact on rural development. In order to achieve this, multiple regressions were used to analyse the data. The results show that total tax collected has a positive relationship with revenue generated. The provision of social amenities has an inverse relationship with total tax collected. Granger causality test underscore the uni-directional causality from revenue generation and provision of social amenities. Therefore, all should endeavour to pay their taxes. Government should provide all the necessary amenities and make available financial services to the people. This will enhance their contributions to economic, social development and overall gross domestic product.. The implication is that there will be improved standard of living, self reliance and eradication of poverty in the country.

Informal Capital Markets and Integrated Rural Development in Nigeria

The study examined the effects of informal capital markets on people-oriented development at the grassroots level in Nigeria. It was motivated by the prevalent speculations and differences of opinion in the literature about the effects of the markets on rural development in most third world countries, including Nigeria. The study adopted the exploratory survey research design and used mean score and Mann-Whitney U test in analyzing the data. The outcome of the analysis, among others, shows first, that all the benchmarks for rural developments, such as poverty reduction, women empowerment and housing development, were significantly related to informal capital market participation. Second, the utilization of micro credits was a major factor in the profitability and growth of business in the rural areas. It is recommended that the monetary authorities and other policymakers recognize the cooperative finance efforts of this group of financial institutions, and devise appropriate means of integrating it with the formal financial sector for improved financial intermediation and wellbeing of the rural poor as well as sustainable growth of the national economies.

Impact of Corporate Agriculture on Sustainable Rural Development in Nigeria

This study sets out to investigate whether corporate agriculture has any significant impact on Nigeria’s economy. The dimensions of impact assessed are mainly capital investment, private sector’s participation, employment and rural resource/infrastructural development. We used descriptive statistics and simple percentages for evaluation. Secondary data from the Nigerian Stock Exchange were collected, sorted, classified and used for the analysis, with extensive literature review. The study finds that corporate agriculture has significant positive impact on the economy, but the subsector is still under-invested and under-utilized. Government policies had not encouraged large scale investment in corporate agriculture; rather it has only favored official funding of agricultural programs creating loopholes for mismanagement of huge agricultural resources and wastages. The implications are obvious; including unemployment, food insecurity and rural poverty. Our limitation is with respect to inaccurate, up-to-date secondary data. However, this limitation does not invalidate our findings. We recommend corporate agriculture, policy reforms and accelerated investment in the sector through public-private partnership. We also recommend a bridge in infrastructure gap between rural and urban geography in a comprehensive rural-urban integration program. We conclude that Nigeria can achieve food security and also contribute to food security in other countries through exports and foreign exchange.

Democracy and Rural Development in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic: Challenges and Prospect

Nigeria’s return to democratically elected government in 1999; after decades of Military rule and dictatorship since independence in 1960 has placed the country’s agenda on an agreed target by all and sundry, and this was accompanied by hopes, aspirations and expectations, due to the fact that, the countries development remains inadequate, most especially at the rural level which is regarded as most deprived and undeveloped. This paper therefore, attempts to examine the challenges and prospects of democracy on rural development in Nigeria from 1999-2014. The methodologies adopted in obtaining data for the paper are purely empirical and secondary. The paper contends that, democratic performance to bringing the desired changes and development in Nigeria remained abysmal and insignificant. It was concluded that for democracy to be meaningful; rural dwellers which accounted for the bulk of the country’s population must be developed otherwise the counties strides to been among one of the developed nations will remain a mirage and unattained. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n6s4p445

Women and Rural Development in Nigeria: Some Critical Issues for Policy Consideration

This paper examines the broad idea of gender and development with specific focus on some critical issues and challenges confronting the involvement of rural women in development activities in Nigeria. The paper addresses this issue through some theoretical and empirical review of literatures. Major impacts of women in rural development in Nigeria have been discussed and situated at historical perspectives through analysis of policies and programmes of government. Although women have served as critical agents of rural economic transformation, such role has been limited in scope, mostly shaped by the dictates of local patriarchy and religious beliefs. Their impacts have been felt indirectly in subsistent agriculture, and directly at the domestic domain. A number of challenges affecting their active involvement in rural development have been discussed to include the prevalence of cultural and institutional barriers as well as limited access to critical infrastructures in the rural areas. Policy recommendations focus on practical, legislative, legal and administrative actions that are particularly targeted at addressing those barriers.

Microfinance Banks and Rural Development

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) launched the microfinance banking scheme on December 2005 as part of government strategies to achieve one of the cardinal agendas of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of reducing extreme poverty by 2015. The microfinance banks (MFBs) were promoted to provide financial services to the economically active poor in the society and to create an environment of financial inclusion to boost the capacity of micro, small and medium enterprises that abound in our rural areas. The impact of the MFBs in rural development in Nigeria was empirically evaluated in this study using some performance indicators. These include growth in deposit mobilization, aggregate credit extension, loan per rural person (LPRP), total assets of MFBs, etc. The ordinary least square econometrics was used to generate the regression coefficients and other statistics. Data for the study were gathered from the Annual Report and Accounts published by the MFBs and collated and analyzed by the CBN in the Statistical Bulletins. The impetus for the study was largely derived from the renewed interest in microfinancing by the World Bank, International Development Institutions, the Nigerian Government and other International Development Partners. The results of the study show that MFBs have impacted positively on our rural economy. The regression coefficients for all the key factors analyzed in the research were positive though not statistically significant. This means that the full impact possibilities of these institutions as catalyst for rural development are yet to be realized. The findings also provide significant support to the rationale earlier canvassed by the CBN for the recent re-engineering of the various microfinance institutions in the country in order to improve their impact possibilities. The researchers noted that the recent re-engineering and retooling of the MFBs scheme is one step in the right direction and recommends that government should provide key infrastructures especially electricity and ensure stable macroeconomic environment to enable micro and other business enterprises to thrive in the country.

Achieving Sustainable Poverty Reduction and Rural Development in Nigeria through Local Economic Development Strategies

All around the world, local governments, the private sector and even the civil society are exploring better ways to achieve poverty reduction and rural development through local economic development strategies, the corner stone of sustainable national development. This is sequel to the fact that local governments, particularly in Nigeria face increased challenges of poor qualitative leadership, financial indiscipline, almost absolute reliance on allocation from the federated account / low internally generated revenues, pervasive poverty, income inequality, long-term ethnic conflict and civil unrest, political instability and corruption among others. Meanwhile, massive transformations are taking place in the global economy resulting from trade liberalization, privatization and enhanced telecommunications. The significance of this paradox to Nigeria is that citizens and local governments now face formidable challenges, greater opportunity and growing responsibility to work together to address the dehumanizing socio-economic conditions of their local citizens, most of whom are under employed or out rightly unemployed and living in absolute poverty. This paper postulates local economic development strategies, a participating process in which local people from all sectors work together to help create decent jobs and improve the quality of life for everyone, including the poor and marginalized as the most potent tool for achieving sustainable poverty reduction and rural transformation in Nigeria.

Resource-Centred Rural Development Plans in Nigeria: Policies, Impacts, Challenges and Opportunities

This paper discusses the role and impacts of resource availability in driving rural development in Nigeria. Particular emphasis is focused on understanding how the availability of specific resources in Nigeria’s rural areas have shaped policy discourses, initiation and implementation processes. From the discussion, rural resources have been important in driving rural policy changes both positively and negatively. Agriculturalcentered rural development policies were important in developing the rural areas both at pre-independence and in the period of commercial petroleum oil exploration. However, the commercial exploitation of petroleum resources in the 1970s served to undermine relevant and potential policy drives aimed at developing available rural resources. In this way rural resources have failed to transform into opportunities for development despite its contributions to the national economy. It is the recommendation of this paper that a national diversification be emphasized beyond petroleum oil dependence. More emphasis should be placed on strengthening agricultural productivity as well as exploring other natural resources potentials. These will reposition the rural areas as centers of development activities.

Local Government and the Challenges of Rural Development in Nigeria (1999 to date)

This paper examined Local Government and the Challenges of Rural Development in Nigeria from 1999 till date. The key problem facing most local governments is lack of adequate finance to implement various developmental programmes especially at the rural areas. The study adopted secondary source in collection of data. This paper argued that local governments were faced with such challenges like inadequate finance, corruption, poor implementation of projects, lack of competent manpower, high level of illiteracy, lack of due consultation and non-involvement of local dwellers in policy decisions and hijack of local government allocation by the state government. The paper therefore recommended an upward review of statutory allocations to local councils as well as direct disbursement of funds to local governments, better welfare package to workers and open administration that encourages local participation.

Local Government Administration and Rural Development in Nigeria

The local government as third tier of government was created in order to render essential services to the people at the grassroot thereby bringing about rural development. It is also a government tier that most accessible to the people. Because there are usually no tangible developmental projects embarked upon by the local governments, the people are hardly involved in any developmental activities. This study was therefore carried out to examine the performance of Ovia South – West Local council and identify major impediment of local government in rural development. The survey method was adopted for the study using primary and secondary sources of data collection. Five hundred questionnaires were distributed and 450 were retrieved for final analyses. Three hypotheses were formulated and tested, using the simple percentage for data analyses. The finds reveal that the performance of local government is very poor in rural development efforts. The study also reveals that infrastructures are not adequately provided at the grassroot and that the calibre of workers at the grassroot government are not doing well enough to enhance rural development. The paper amongst others, recommended that local government should create consciousness and awareness for the rural dwellers to participate in development activities of their local government, and that the local government workers should be trained and re-trained regularly to be more effective and efficient in serving the people, that projects being executed should be beneficial to the people and that project should be awarded to contractors on merit.

Participatory Community-Driven Development and Sustainable Rural Development in Nigeria

Since the mid-1990s, community driven development has emerged as one of the fastest growing investments by donor agencies. It emerged against the conventional top-down syndrome which never had any sustainable impact on the living conditions of community members especially in rural Nigeria. Participatory development is a way of learning from and with community members to investigate, analyse, and evaluate constraints and opportunities, and make informed and timely decisions regarding development projects. The key elements of a successful community driven development projects are participation, sustainability and an enabling policy environment. Therefore, the micro-projects programme embarked upon by the European Union in the Oil producing areas of the Niger Delta region of Nigeria was evaluated based on the key elements. It was realized that the non-participation of all the subgroups in the communities, unsustainaility plan, and lack of enabling policy environment led to the abandonment of some of the projects in some communities. Therefore, the good intention of the donor agencies of reducing poverty in the rural communities, reaching out to the disadvantage groups, easing social tension and ensuring sustainable development of the rural areas have been negated.

Agribusiness as a Veritable Tool for Rural Development in Nigeria

This paper examines the role of agribusiness in all its tri-aggregates to the socio-economic development of the rural sector in Nigeria. It acknowledges the importance of agriculture as it employs a majority of the rural population in a predominantly agrarian society like Nigeria. It draws majorly from documentary evidence on agribusiness and agro-industrial linkage and reveals that, the farm, off farm and processing components of agribusiness are capable of generating jobs, provision of income, poverty reduction and infrastructural growth. The paper however identifies poor policy articulations, shortage of working capital, poor infrastructure lack of ideology etc. as major obstacles to effective agribusiness. The paper recommends a robust political will, a sound ideological frame, adequate funds among other measures to develop a strong interface between agricultural policies and politics in achieving a sustainable agribusiness as a veritable tool for rural development in Nigeria.

Agribusiness as a Veritable Tool for Rural Development in Nigeria

Agribusiness as a Veritable Tool for Rural Development in Nigeria

Agribusiness as a Veritable Tool for Rural Development in Nigeria

This paper examines the role of agribusiness in all its tri-aggregates to the socio-economic development of the rural sector in Nigeria. It acknowledges the importance of agriculture as it employs a majority of the rural population in a predominantly agrarian society like Nigeria. It draws majorly from documentary evidence on agribusiness and agro-industrial linkage and reveals that, the farm, off farm and processing components of agribusiness are capable of generating jobs, provision of income, poverty reduction and infrastructural growth. The paper however identifies poor policy articulations, shortage of working capital, poor infrastructure lack of ideology etc as major obstacles to effective agribusiness. The paper recommends a robust political will, a sound ideological frame, adequate funds among other measures to develop a strong interface between agricultural policies and politics in achieving a sustainable agribusiness as a veritable tool for rural development in Nigeria. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2013.v4n12p21