CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
Poverty reduction over the years has
been of great concern and challenge to every Government World over. There has
been growing abject poverty in a world of growing material plenty. The
Millennium Development Goals grew out of the various agreements and resolutions
of world organizations in the past decade aimed at addressing the ever-growing
poverty among the populace especially in developing countries. At the
Millennium Summit held in September 2000, in New York, United States of
America, member countries of the United Nations (UN) made the following
declaration: “we will spare no effort to free our fellow men, women and
children from the abject and dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty, to
which more than a billion of them are currently subjected”. The Millennium
Declaration has created a new focus for addressing the issue of poverty that
undermines the international Community’s commitment to act with a renewed
vigour or sense of urgency in achieving specific benchmark within a given time
span. This has led to the formulation and acceptance of the Millennium
Development Goals to be achieved by 2015.
Consequently, the debate has shifted
from the mere scaling-up of aids, to the more complex issue of its quality and
impact. Also of importance is the limited capacities of many developing
countries to benefit from the trade and direct foreign investment that will
make their economies grow. Thus, MDGs is both an opportunity and a challenge.
Nigeria and other developing
countries, especially sub-Saharan African countries face the greatest challenge
for meeting the Millennium Development Goals. Poverty has remained pervasive;
growth is below the threshold of 7% per annum required for the MDGs. The
private sector is weak, external debt remains unsustainable in almost all
countries while social indicators generally point to low levels of human
development. In addition to the above, regional conflicts have inflicted grave
consequences on the population of a number of Sub Saharan African Countries,
thus casting political uncertainty over the region., and also driving away
foreign investment. The World Bank estimates indicate that in the context of
recent economic development experience, it is possible to reach all MDGs by
2015, in all regions if there is a major scaling-up of efforts in Sub-Saharan
Africa.
Nigeria, a country in Sub-Saharan
Africa with current height poverty incidence remains an aberration given the
country’s abundant natural and human resources. The country is endowed with
both material and human resource that disqualify her from the club of the poor.
Thus, it is often said that “Nigeria is so rich not to be poor, but so poor not
to be rich”. The poor state of Nigeria is said to be emanating from past lack
luster political leadership, economic mismanagement, corruption, poor social
infrastructures, ethnic conflicts, insecurity and other social vices.
Furthermore the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have received unprecedented political
commitment and have given rise to a strong consensus that poverty eradication
should be the main aim of international development efforts. At the current
rate of progress, however, the quantitative targets of only one of the eight
goals will be met at the global level by 2015 (Adejo, 2006). It can therefore
be claimed that September 2000 - marks a salient moment in international
efforts to combat extreme poverty. As a result, Bello (2007) posited that it is
increasingly being recognized by the United Nations, governments and concerned
citizens alike, as the year when the world has the opportunity to put in place
the policies and resources needed to fight global poverty and achieve the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGS).
Eradicating poverty is regarded as the
most important goal of human development. Indeed, it is now widely believed
that at its core, development must be about improvement of human well-being,
removal of hunger, disease and promotion of productive employment for all
(Edoh, 2003; Kankwanda, 2002; Mahammed, 2006) lend credence to the foregoing
when they suggested that a nation’s first goal must be to end poverty and
satisfy the private needs for all its citizens in a way that will not
jeopardize the opportunity for the future generations to attain the same
objective. In the words of Mahammed (2006) the MDGS goals, targets and
indicators relating to poverty reduction and hunger, are quite relevant in the
case of Nigeria. While poverty is accelerating at a terrific speed, progress
towards minimizing the menace is at a slow pace. Implementation of the partnership
goals has lagged, and significant progress is apparent only in debt reduction.
Reforms to the global trading system, which are meant to foster the
international integration of poor countries, have not advanced as the Doha
Round has stalled. Aid flows have begun to stagnate following an initial increase
that began in 1997; only five countries (Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands,
Norway and Sweden) have reached the agreed target for development aid of 0.7
per cent of GNI (Central Bank of Nigeria, 2003). Despite the pledge made at the
G-8 summit in Gleneagles in 2005 to double aid to Africa by 2010, disbursements
to the region increased by only 2 per cent between 2005 and 2006 (Mahammed,
2006). These failures of implementation are often attributed to weak commitment
or ownership, especially on the part of developing country policymakers who
give poverty reduction a lower priority than boosting growth or meeting
ill-defined partnership targets for donor countries (Edoh, 2003). Specifically,
the poverty situation was brought to the fore as Nigeria became committed to
the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) Declaration. The MDG’s
mandate countries to half the incidence of poverty in 2015. The National
Economic Empowerment Development strategy (NEEDs) that was introduced in 2004
therefore seeks to tackle poverty head on and provide a robust and efficient
framework for addressing the lingering problems of the economy. As a member of
the United Nations, Nigeria keyed into the MDGS and subsequently produced a
policy document called the National Economic Empowerment and Development
Strategy (NEEDS) to further see to the achievement of the millennium
development goals. Specifically NEEDS has the following actionable goal: (1) Wealth
creation (2) Employment generation (3) Poverty reduction (4) Value
re-orientation. The NEEDS as a national policy was intended to meeting some of
the goals of the MDGs, especially poverty reduction. In assessing the
performance of MDGs and NEEDS in Nigeria, especially when it relates to
‘poverty eradication’ one can say without fear of contradiction that MDGs have
performed below the expectations of Nigerians. It is in recognition of the
above, that this study is set to consider the effects of MDGs on the
eradication of extreme poverty and hunger in Nigeria, with a particular
reference to Keffi Nasarawa state.
1.2 Statement of the Problems
The target of the first goal of MDGs is the
reduction by half the proportion of people living on less than one dollar a day
between 1999 and 2015. It also advocates the reduction by half the proportion
of people living in extreme hunger. According to the African development Bank
(ADB) (2003), in 1997, Nigeria had 70.2% of her population living above US$1
per day and 90.8% below 2 dollars a day using the international poverty line
criteria. By the same criteria, Nigeria currently has 34.1% of her population
living below the US$1 (dollar) a day. The poverty line is defined as a line
below which adequate acceptance nutrition – shelter and personal amenities
cannot be assured. This indicates that poverty among the population is
escalating, as most macroeconomic fundamentals seem to be getting worse.
Despite the extreme statistical data,
Nigeria has a large information sector whose activities were never captured. In
addition, the coping mechanism, strategies, and the resilience of the
population which are not put into consideration in calculating the indices may
be responsible for averting total collapse of the economies of most poor countries
where majority of citizens live below the poverty line of about one dollar.
Malnutrition and under-nourishment are closely linked to income poverty.
Nigeria had made dramatic progress in reducing the proportion of under-weight
children. Consequently, the African Development Bank (2006/2007), reported that
Nigeria had only 7% of the children under-nourished with food availability at
2840 Kcal/person/day between 1998 – 2011. This may not be an ideal situation as
there is room for progress through MDGs intervention.
1.3 Objectives
of the Study
The broad
objective of the study is an analysis of the effect of MDGs on the eradication
of extreme poverty and hunger in Nigeria case study of Keffi Nasarawa state,
while the specific objectives are as follows;
a.
To examine the factors responsible for the
increase in poverty rate in Nasarawa state.
b.
To ascertain the measures taken by government
to eradicate poverty in Nasarawa state.
c.
To
discuss the problems facing the federal and Nasarawa state Government towards
the achievement of MDGs.
d.
To proffer solutions to the above identified
problems.
e.
Finally to recommend sound policy measures to
the Government on how best to achieve the MDGs and poverty reduction in
Nasarawa state.
1.4 Research
Questions
The questions
which this research seeks to find answers to are:
a.
What are the factors responsible for the
increase in poverty rate in Nasarawa state?
b.
What are the measures taken by government to
eradicate poverty in Nasarawa state?
c.
What
are the problems facing the federal and Nasarawa state Government towards the
achievement of MDGs?
d.
What are solutions to the above identified
problems?
e.
Finally what are the policy measures that
will enhance the attainment of MDGs and poverty reduction in Nasarawa state?
1.5 Statement
of Hypotheses
In order to
pursue the objectives of the study, the following hypotheses have been
formulated and will be tested.
Ho: MDGs had no
significant impact on the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger in Keffi
Nasarawa State.
H1: MDGs has a
significant impact on the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger in Keffi
Nasarawa State.
1.6 Significance of the Study
The significance of this study cannot be
overemphasized. First, it will serve as a contribution to research work on the
area of MDGs and poverty reduction in Nigeria. Second, it will serve a number
of purposes for all the relevant stakeholders. Third, it will serve as a
reference material to all the relevant stakeholders. In addition, it will contain a collection of
research efforts of different scholars in the field of MDGs and poverty
reduction. Also many studies do not adequately bring out the policy implication
of their results; this study will fill that gap. This study will come up with
practical policy recommendation on how poverty rate can be reduced to barest
minimum in Nigeria. It will aid other researchers to carry out more studious
research on areas not covered by the study.
Lastly the study will recommend sound policy to the government and
policy makers on how best to solve the problem of poverty and hunger in
Nigeria.
1.7 Scope
of the Study
The study focused on MDGs and the eradication
of poverty and extreme hunger in Nasarawa state; a case study of Keffi,
(1990-2013).
1.8 Limitations of the Study
The major
constraint of this research work was sourcing for the relevant information from
health sector in Nasarawa state, MDGs office, Central Bank of Nigeria, National Bureau of
Statistics, Public and Private Sector within Nasarawa State. Some of
the institutions or departments were unable to release some vital information
considered as critical to the survival of the organization.
In
addition, inadequate financial resources which affected the sourcing and
collection of all relevant information needed for this research work was a
constraint. The cost of, visiting institutions such as CBN and Nasarawa State department etc to obtain
relevant information was also a constraint.
1.9 Plan of the Study
This research work is divided into 5 chapters, Chapter one (1)
presents
the
General Introduction, Chapter two (2) reviews the related literature and provides the conceptual,
empirical and theoretical frame work, Chapter three (3) contains the
methodology of the study, Chapter four (4) analyze and interpret the data,
Chapter five (5) summarizes, concludes and makes necessary recommendations
1.10 Definition of Terms
Some
Key terms used in this study are defined as follows:
Hunger: This
simply means need or desire for food
MDGS: These are
goals geared towards the reduction of poverty and encouragement of rapid
progress in the improvement of the world. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
are a set of eight goals which member states of the United Nations are
committed to achieve by the year 2015 and were unanimously accepted as the
framework for measuring progress in development. The eight MDGs are:
1.
Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
2.
Achieve Universal Primary Education
3. Promote
Gender Equality and Empower Women
4.
Reduce Child Mortality
5.
Improve Maternal Health
6.
Combat HIV, Malaria and Other Diseases
7.
Ensure Environmental Sustainability
8.
Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Poverty: This simply means hunger, lack of shelter,
being sick and not being able to go to school, not knowing how to read, not
being able to speak properly, not having job, fear for the future, losing a
child to illness brought about by unclean water, powerlessness, lack of
representation and freedom.
1.11
List of Abbreviations and Acronyms
CBN:
Central Bank of Nigeria
MDGs: Millennium Development Goals
ILO: International Labour Organisation
NASEEDS: Nasarawa state Economic Empowerment
and Development Strategy
For the full project contact me on 07032879723 or michaelonjewu@yahoo.com
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