This report collates findings which surveys aspects of poverty in Nigeria from social, political, economic, environmental, and technological perspectives. Measuring Poverty in Nigeria should prove useful to development organizations and other representatives of civil society engaged in promoting good governance in Nigeria,
One of the critical concerns in Nigeria is how to alleviate poverty in the country. The general prevalence of poverty in Nigeria is paradoxical because the country is one of the biggest oil-producing countries in the world. A 1999 World Bank report for instance showed that some 70 per cent of the population lives below the bread line - usually considered as living on less than US$1.00 a day. This raises a number of very important questions: What are really responsible for the wide prevalence of poverty in Nigeria in the midst of plenty? How is poverty manifested in the country? What alleviation strategies are in place? How effective are they? And what are the implications of all these for the country's democracy project, political stability, nation-building and development discourse? Contributors to this volume address these questions and provide insights into some of the central issues in the discussion of poverty, including how the poor themselves struggle to cope or adapt to their condition. Using multidisciplinary perspectives, the contributors critique the current alleviation strategies and recommend more viable and better- targeted approaches that will sharply reduce the incidence of poverty in Nigeria. _____________________________________________ * Mustapha C. Duze is a Professor of Sociology at Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria. He did his undergraduate studies in Sociology at the University of Ife, Nigeria, and holds a PhD in Demography from the University of Pennsylvania, U.S.A. Professor Duze also holds a Diploma in Survey Sampling from the Institute of Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Abor, U.S.A He was Head of the Department of Sociology at Bayero University (1994-1999) and the Director of the General Studies Unit of the same University (2002 to 2006). He has published widely in scholarly journals and has co-authored several books. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief of Bayero University's Journal of interdisciplinary Studies. *Dr. Habu Mohammed holds a PhD in Political Science from Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria. He is currently a senior lecturer in the Department of Political Science, Bayero University, Kano-Nigeria. He has published widely in the areas of political economy, political development, peace studies, human rights, civil society and democratization. He is a co-editor of Readings in Social Science Research (2006) and editor of Concepts and Issues in Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution (2005). He is a Member of the Editorial Board of the faculty-based Journal of Social and Management Studies (JOSAMS). He was also a Fulbright Fellow at the Programme of African Studies (PAS), Northwestern University, Illinois, U.S.A. * Professor Ibrahim Ahmed Kiyawa did his undergraduate studies at the University of Bradford in the United Kingdom and a doctorate degree in Development Economics, from Maxwell School, Syracuse University, New York, USA. Professor Kiyawa was a Dean of the Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, Bayero University, Kano-Nigeria for a long time, and Head of the Department of Economics, which he founded in 1976. Professor Kiyawa has over 30 years of teaching and research experience. He has published extensively in national and international journals and has edited a number of books, including Management of the Nigerian Economy under Democratic Administration (2000), Accountability, Finance, and Financial Discipline in Local Government Administration (1999), Topics on the Nigerian Economy (1988), and Export Promotion as a Strategy for Industrialization (1988). Prof. Kiyawa is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Social and Management Studies ( JOSAMS).
This book demonstrates that there is sufficient evidence on the Nigerian economy and society to inform many policy issues, and reveals the current problems and policy options that a democratic Nigeria will need to debate and resolve. It presents an agenda of reform as unfinished business.
The main objective of this book is to re-evaluate the true meaning of the term poverty in the world as a whole and in Nigeria in particular. From a sociological point of view, poverty is the natural consequence of economic inequity amongst social groups, a type of inequity often generated by the inability of the political class to provide and maintain basic amenities in the society. This book highlights so many complex reasons that are responsible for this type of inability, prominent amongst them being mismanagement of funds in most political setups. Our investigation from this book shows that theres a great difference between the various forms of poverty in western countries and in other countries of the world. Poverty may be caused by individual, social, cultural, ethical and moral issues. These various causes of poverty are often correlated. In Nigeria, poverty is mainly caused by lack of moral sensitivities amongst political leaders and by lack of initiatives for cultural, social and economic empowerment of the less privileged. Most striking is the fact that there is no basic well-established governmental structure meant to assist those who languish in poverty. This book discusses the real-life situation of those who suffer and are living in abject poverty. The book also discusses proposals that can help improve their condition. In line with this, the effective contributions the church can make in order to fight poverty will be taken into consideration. In fact, it is not enough for the church to know that the situation of long-term injustice in Nigeria is crippling the country; rather, she has also to live up to her mission vis--vis the poor and the marginalised who are living in the country.
This Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper for Nigeria highlights the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS). NEEDS gives special support to agriculture, industry, small and medium-scale enterprises, and oil and gas. Under the plan, the government will seek long-term capital for investment. Trade policy will be modified to unburden business of the red tape and complex procedures that hinder it from flourishing. NEEDS envisages forging stronger links between educational institutions and industry to stimulate rapid industrial growth and efficient exploitation of resources.
Perceptions of Africa have changed dramatically. Viewed as a continent of wars, famines and entrenched poverty in the late 1990s, there is now a focus on “Africa rising†? and an “African 21st century.†? Two decades of unprecedented economic growth in Africa should have brought substantial improvements in well-being. Whether or not they did, remains unclear given the poor quality of the data, the nature of the growth process (especially the role of natural resources), conflicts that affect part of the region, and high population growth. Poverty in a Rising Africa documents the data challenges and systematically reviews the evidence on poverty from monetary and nonmonetary perspectives, as well as a focus on dimensions of inequality. Chapter 1 maps out the availability and quality of the data needed to track monetary poverty, reflects on the governance and political processes that underpin the current situation with respect to data production, and describes some approaches to addressing the data gaps. Chapter 2 evaluates the robustness of the estimates of poverty in Africa. It concludes that poverty reduction in Africa may be slightly greater than traditional estimates suggest, although even the most optimistic estimates of poverty reduction imply that more people lived in poverty in 2012 than in 1990. A broad-stroke profile of poverty and trends in poverty in the region is presented. Chapter 3 broadens the view of poverty by considering nonmonetary dimensions of well-being, such as education, health, and freedom, using Sen's (1985) capabilities and functioning approach. While progress has been made in a number of these areas, levels remain stubbornly low. Chapter 4 reviews the evidence on inequality in Africa. It looks not only at patterns of monetary inequality in Africa but also other dimensions, including inequality of opportunity, intergenerational mobility in occupation and education, and extreme wealth in Africa.
This book presents a collection of chapters that examine various dimensions of development. Between 2000 and 2015, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) remained the overarching development framework that governed the international development community. After a decade and half of commitment to the MDGs, the framework is widely considered a success, although progress reported across countries has been uneven. The new overarching international development framework may not be successful or present the best opportunities for the desired global change without a better understanding of factors that contributed the most or the least to the attainment of the MDGs. The chapters presented in this book provide discussions and insights into understanding these factors better. They represent a collection of scholarship that address some of the important questions in international development. They adopt a wide range of research methods to provide insight into what works, and what does not, in promoting the stipulated development goals.
The book contributes to the growing literature pertaining to empirical and policy issues in international trade, foreign capital flows and issues in finance, implications for India and emerging economies related to trade and development interface, and analysis of sector level growth and development in India. Further, the focus is on the policy aspects of these themes and their role in fostering economic development in the context of India and other emerging market economies. The discourse focuses mainly on empirical work and econometric details. The relevant issues are investigated using state of the art techniques such as gravity models, panel co-integration, generalized hyperbolic distributions, SEM, FMOLS and Probit models. In addition, detailed literature survey, discussions on data availability, issues related to statistical estimation techniques and a theoretical background, ensure that each chapter significantly contributes to the ever-growing literature on international trade and capital flows. The readers shall find an engaging dialogue on the crucial role played by policy and the trade-capital flows-growth experience of emerging economies. The book is relevant for those who are interested in contemporary issues in trade, growth and finance as well as for students of advanced econometrics who may benefit from the analytical and econometric exposition. The empirical evidences provided here could serve as ready reference for academicians, researchers and policy makers, particularly in emerging economies facing similar challenges.
A poverty line helps focus the attention of governments and civil society on the living conditions of the poor. This paper offers a critical overview of alternative approaches to setting poverty lines. In reviewing the methods found in practice, the paper tries to throw light on, and go some way toward resolving, ongoing debates about poverty measurement, emphasizing those debates which would appear to have greatest bearing on policy discussions.
As the "Giant of Africa" Nigeria is home to about twenty percent of the population of Sub-Saharan Africa, serves as Africa's largest producer of oil and natural gas, comprises Africa's largest economy, and represents the cultural center of African literature, film, and music. Yet the country is plagued by problems that keep it from realizing its potential as a world power. Boko Haram, a radical Islamist insurrection centered in the northeast of the country, is an ongoing security challenge, as is the continuous unrest in the Niger Delta, the heartland of Nigeria's petroleum wealth. There is also persistent violence associated with land and water use, ethnicity, and religion. In Nigeria: What Everyone Needs to Know®, John Campbell and Matthew Page provide a rich contemporary overview of this crucial African country. Delving into Nigeria's recent history, politics, and culture, this volume tackles essential questions related to widening inequality, the historic 2015 presidential election, the persistent security threat of Boko Haram, rampant government corruption, human rights concerns, and the continual conflicts that arise in a country that is roughly half Christian and half Muslim. With its continent-wide influence in a host of areas, Nigeria's success as a democracy is in the fundamental interest of its African neighbors, the United States, and the international community. This book will provide interested readers with an accessible, one-of-a-kind overview of the country.