SUSTAINABLE RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA: AN OVERVIEW

Kayode Asaju

Abstract


Sustainable development is about responding to the needs of the poor in such a way that they will be self-sufficient and be able to participate and contribute to the economic, political and social development of their communities. These, however, had not been the case in most developing countries including Nigeria where the majority of the citizens reside in the rural areas. Despite the various policy measures (i.e. Programmes and projects) put in place by government and other NGOs, the rural areas are still stagnant and the quality of life of her citizenries is at a comatose. The Paper undertook a historical overview of rural development efforts in Nigeria. Specifically, the major Programmes and project geared towards rural development right from independent to date were briefly examined with a view to identifying their suitability to the needs of the rural people, as well as their areas of successes and failures. The paper concludes that various attempts at rural development in Nigeria had been met with acute failure. Major reasons adduced for this failure include poor implementation of these projects and Programmes, lack of government political- will, and the outright imposition of Programmes and projects by the government on the rural populace which are inimical to their needs. A collaborative effort between all the levels of government, other NGOs and the rural communities is therefore required to ensure a sustainable rural development. Above all, government political will is inevitable.

Keywords


Development, Rural Development, Sustainable Development

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References


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