POVERTY AND YOUTH RESTIVENESS IN NORTHERN NIGERIA WITH A CRITICAL OUTLOOK

Abstract

The  endemic poverty afflicting the people of  Northern Nigeria, has led to a state of hopelessness and the recourse to violence against the state , which have manifested in the form of Boko -Haram struggle and other armed bandits. This study investigate poverty and youth restiveness in northern Nigeria with  a critical outlook. Two research questions guided the study. The study adopted descriptive survey design. The sample size was 100 youths drawn from northern states in Nigeria. The researcher designed the questionnaire for data collection. Item mean was used in answering the three research questions. Findings from the study revealed that underemployment and unemployment are the major causes of youth restiveness in the region, also poverty has influenced crimes among members of impoverished communities, making the youths to become vulnerable to violating laws and orders which serve as a linkage between poverty and crime in the region. The paper made the  following recommendations: Nigerian government should embark on effective poverty alleviation and human capital development programmes in order to empower the teeming youths who are mostly vulnerable to be easily recruited for restiveness.