Category: Political Science

  • Globalization and its challenges; assessing the effectiveness of international organization in addressing global challenges

    ABSTRACT

    This research delves into the intricate relationship between globalization and the myriad challenges it presents on a global scale. The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of international organizations in navigating and mitigating these challenges. Contrary to concerns that globalization might impede the efficacy of such organizations, our findings reveal an optimistic perspective. The majority of respondents strongly disagree with the notion that globalization hinders international organizations, indicating a prevailing sentiment that globalization serves as a catalyst for these entities to adapt and effectively address emerging challenges. Identifying key global challenges exacerbated by globalization, the study underscores the significance of climate change, economic inequality, and public health crises. The acknowledgment of regional variations in the manifestation of these challenges emphasizes the need for targeted and context-specific approaches in addressing their impacts. Encouragingly, respondents overwhelmingly express confidence in the adaptability of international organizations. This positive perception reflects a belief in the resilience and capability of these organizations to evolve in response to the dynamic global landscape. The findings underscore the importance of recognizing and leveraging the strengths of international organizations as pivotal players in addressing contemporary challenges.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    • Background to the Study

    The process of globalization had started in a small way in the nineteenth century. Toyo (2000) records that globalization began when capital moved from Europe to open up new areas in America and Australia, mostly in the building of rail road systems and agriculture that would be central to the expansion of capitalism. The subsequent maturation of joint-stock companies and developments in the areas of banking, industrial capital and technology, aided among other things, the scramble for and partitioning of Africa and, its then attendant rapacious exploitation of these parts of the world. Ohuabunwa (1999) argues, even though, the pre-eminence of globalization as championed by America was interrupted by the cold war era, with the effective end of the latter in 1990, the west no longer need to compromise as before, its ideology of globalization culture on the account of communism.

    Consequent on this, the global economy continued to experience some fundamental changes in nearly all ramifications including “even the language of global discourse”. This trend is currently being pursued with vigour by the now acclaimed instruments of globalization. Given the historical relationship between Africa and the West it is ironic that the latter is today preaching the virtues of freedom to Africans. Former colonizers and ex-slaveowners have made a virtue of championing political and economic liberalization. Yesterday’s oppressors appear to be today’s liberators, fighting for democracy, human rights and free market economies throughout the world (Obadina, 1998).

    Globalization has largely been driven by the interests and needs of the developed world (Grieco and Holmes, (1999). Globalization has turned the world into the big village… This in turn has led to intense electronic corporate commercial war to get the attention and nod of the customer globally… This war for survival can only get more intense in the new millennium. Are we prepared to face the realities of this global phenomenon, which has the potential of wiping out industrial enterprise in Africa (Ohuabunwa, 1999)?

    From the time when the Cold War ended, ongoing trends in global economic interactions tend to point out that globalization and economic inequality remains a neglected subject matter in both economic policies and development studies. Developed countries have been playing a dominant role in the process of economic globalization. Economic globalization in the post-World War II period has been incited by the successive rounds of trade liberalization under the backings of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the harbinger to the WTO (Dreher et al., 2008).

    The fact that prosperity and adversity of African economic development was tied to remarkable contemporary globalization is not debatable, the events in the last decade in the global economy proposed that globalization is both a good and a bad thing to the third World countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America. For instance, some individuals such as Dani (1999), David (1997), and Salimono (1999) opined that globalization opens opportunities; others such as Awake (2002) and Garry (1998) expressed fear about globalization. Evangelos (2001) and Gondwe (2001) stated that although globalization is a powerful engine of the world economy, its benefits have not been evenly distributed. As a result, income disparities between the rich and the poor countries have increased. Dembele (1998) put it that globalization tends to consolidate the existing international division of labour which confines Africa to a role of supplier of raw materials and commodities and consumer of manufactured goods from developed countries. Worse of all, globalization will considerably undermine and eliminate the role of the African States in defining the priorities of national development. This is to say that globalization contributed tremendously to the continued unequal exchange of economic goods and services between Africa and other developed nations of the world.

    Globalization however, has continued to spring enormous debate controversy, protest and demonstrations that are sometimes violent in nature. The reaction to the concept of globalization and its application to human development have been significantly more pronounced in the relationship between the developed western world which are owners of the new technologies and the poor developing countries which are by and large consumers of the new capitalist economy. Nigeria is in the global village hence is an importer of goods and services.

    The emergence of Nigeria into globalization started significantly with the advent of Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in collaboration with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank which led towards external liberation focusing on market oriented economic system, export-led strategy and stability of the economy. Nigeria as an economy cannot develop in isolation. Therefore, efforts must be geared towards removing factors that hinder effective integration of Nigeria to the global economy and improving benefits derivable from globalization (Alimi & Atanda (2011).

    Economic inequality in Nigeria has reached extreme levels, despite being the largest economy in Africa. The country has an expanding economy with abundant human capital and the economic potential to lift millions out of poverty. But the question is, what makes Nigeria so unequal and how big is this inequality gap?

    • Statement of the Problem

    The cold war which was born out of the process for globalization has had significant consequences for Africa. During its height in the 1960’s and 1970’s, the cold war witnessed the emergence of authoritarian regimes in the form of one-party or military regimes. This was largely a result of the support of the two blocks to keep African countries in their respective camps. This has in turn, substantially reduced Africa’s international negotiating power and its ability to maneuver in the international system. In sum then, the cold war and its demise has worked against democracy and economic development in Africa. The impact of globalization on Africa in the political sphere has also been identified, the most important consequence is the loss of sovereignty, especially on economic and financial matters, as a result of the imposition of models, strategies and policies of development on African countries by the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the World Trade Organization.

    Economically, globalization has, on the whole, reinforced the economic marginalization of African economies and their dependence on a few primary goods for which demand and prices are externally determined. This has, in turn heightened poverty and economic inequality as well as the ability of the vast number of Africans to participate meaningfully in the social and political life of their countries. Lastly, globalization introduces anti-developmentalism by declaring the state irrelevant or marginal to the developmental effort. Development strategies and policies that focus on stabilization and privatization, rather than growth, development and poverty eradication, are pushed by external donors, leading to greater poverty and inequality, undermining the ability of the people to participate effectively in the political and social processes in their countries. Welfare and other programs intended to meet the basic needs of the majority of the population are transferred from governments to non-governmental organizations that begin to replace governments making them to lose the little authority and legitimacy they have.

    • Objectives of the Study

    The general objective of this study is to examine the challenges of globalization and the effectiveness of international organizations in Africa, precisely in Nigeria. However, the specific objectives of the study are as follows;

    1. To determine the role of international organizations as agents of globalization in Africa, especially in Nigeria.
    2. To examine how globalization has reduced the economic inequality and marginalization of African economies, and their dependence on developed countries.
    • To determine the extent globalization has led to greater opportunities for African countries to participate effectively in the political and social processes.
      • Research Questions
    1. What are the roles of international organizations as agents of globalization in Africa, especially in Nigeria?
    2. How has globalization reduced the economic inequality and marginalization of African economies, and their dependence on developed countries?
    • To what extent has globalization led to greater opportunities for African countries to participate effectively in the political and social processes?
      • Definition of Concepts

    Globalization

    Globalization means different things to different people. Some say it is the movement of people, language, ideas, and products around the world. Others see it as the dominance of multinational corporations and the destruction of cultural identities. Extracting from the “Globalization website”, globalization broadly refers to the expansion of global linkages, the organization of social life on a global scale, and the growth of a global consciousness, hence to the consolidation of world society. Such a definition captures much of what the term commonly means, but its meaning is disputed. It encompasses several large processes; definitions differ in what they emphasize. Globalization is historically complex; definitions vary in the particular driving force they identify. The meaning of the term is itself a topic in global discussion; it may refer to “real” processes, ideas that justify them, or to a way of thinking about them.

    Globalization according to Akindele (1990) refers to the process of the intensification of economic, political, social and cultural relations across international boundaries. Globalization is principally aimed at the transcendental homogenization of political and socio-economic theory across the globe. It is equally aimed at “making global being present worldwide at the world stage or global arena” (Fafowora, 1998). In other words, as Ohuabunwa, (1999:20) once opined: Globalization can be seen as an evolution which is systematically restructuring interactive phases among nations by breaking down barriers in the areas of culture, commerce, communicatiohyn and several other fields of endeavor.

    Simply put, globalization is the term used to describe the changes in societies and the world economy that result from dramatically increased international trade and cultural exchange. Cerry (1994) also said, globalization describes the increase of trade and investment due to the falling of barriers and the interdependence of countries. In specific economic contexts, the term refers almost exclusively to the effects of trade, particularly trade liberalization or “free trade.” Banjo (2000), insisted that the process of globalization is impelled by the series of cumulative and conjectural crisis in the international division of labour and global distribution of economic and political power, in global finance and the functioning of national states.

    Within the parameters of the foregoing, globalization could be correctly defined from the institutional perspective as the spread of capitalism (MacEwan, 1990). Beyond this simplistic analysis of globalization in terms of capital inflows and trade investment, it is important to state that Charlick (2000) emphasized that, it has been of disastrous consequences to the governments and people of the African continent. Globalization according to Ohiorhenuan (19998), is the broadening and deepening linkages of national economies into a worldwide market for goods and services, especially capital. As Tandon (1998b) once opined, globalization seeks to remove all national barriers to the free movement of international capital and this process is accelerated and facilitated by the supersonic transformation in information technology.

    The concept of globalization is global and dominant in the world today. It was created by the dominant forces to serve their specific interests. Simultaneously these social forces gave themselves a new ideological name the “international community”- to go with the idea of globalization (Madunagu, 1999). Globalization has turned the world into a big village… Despite the ambiguities of the concept, the essential nature of globalization is the compression of space and time, as a result, the world becomes one, and interactions among diverse people begin to look like those within a village. Thus terms such as “one world” and “villagization”.

    Owugah (2003) defines globalisation as a technological driven process which breaks down national borders to ensure unrestricted movement of capital, technology, goods and services across national boundaries. Similarly, Khor (2003) defines globalisation as the process that results in the breaking down of national economic barriers, the international spread of trade, financial and production activities, and growing power of transnational corporations and international financial institutions in these processes. However, Ekpe gave a more comprehensive definition when he described it as “The process by which political, economic and socio-cultural mechanisms are strategically used in order to integrate the world such that it would be easier to export embellished western cultural values and ethos for the benefit of the industrialized nations (Ekpe, 2005).

    In its contemporary form, globalization is driven by variety of forces. These, Colle (2000) argued are flow of financial and economic resources with particular reference to the flow of goods and services and, to a large extent, labour, technology, transport, communications and information technology, the spread of culture from one corner of the world to the other, and global diffusion of religious ideas as well as ideologies.

    International Organization

    An international organization is one that includes members from more than one nation. Some international organizations are very large, such as corporations. Others are small and dedicated to a specific purpose, such as conservation of a species. Many international organizations are intergovernmental. Intergovernmental organizations arise from multiple governments forming an international organization. There are more than 300 intergovernmental organizations around the world.

    The United Nations (UN) is the largest and most familiar intergovernmental organization. In 1945, at the end of World War II, governments wanted to avoid future wars. They formed the UN. The United Nations has several specialized subgroups, such as the World Health Organization (WHO). It is also affiliated with the World Bank. There are other organizations such as; The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), etc.

    Some international organizations combine parts of all three types of organizations. Perhaps the most familiar type of international organization that does not fit neatly into the three categories in organized religion.

    Economic Inequality

    Economic inequality is the unequal distribution of income and opportunity between different groups in society. It is a concern in almost all countries around the world and often people are trapped in poverty with little chance to climb up the social ladder. But, being born into poverty does not automatically mean you stay poor. Education, at all levels, enhancing skills, and training policies can be used alongside social assistance programs to help people out of poverty and to reduce inequality. Several countries are also now exploring whether a universal basic income could be the answer.

    Economic inequality refers to the disparity in wealth (one’s total assets) and income (the money one receives from activities like work or investment) between people. The higher the disparity, the greater the inequality. Economic inequality does not look the same worldwide. Some countries are more equal than others. Certain countries are witnessing their inequality increase faster than in other countries.

    There are many definitions of globalization, but there is still the lack of a standard one, which would fulfill its task in different scientific environments. Therefore, there is a need of presenting a few definitions which treat globalization from the economic point of view.

    According to Anthony McGrew, the British economist who compiled a popular definition, “globalization is a process (or set of processes) which embodies a transformation in the spatial organization of social relations and transactions, generating transcontinental or interregional flows and networks of activity, interaction and power

    In sum, “globalization can be thought of as the widening, intensifying, speeding up, and growing impact of world-wide interconnectedness. By conceiving of globalization in this way, it becomes possible to map empirically patterns of worldwide links and relations across all key domains of human activity, from the military to the cultural [polity.co.uk/global/default.htm].

    The other definition was provided by UNCTAD, which says that globalization refers both to an increasing flow of goods and resources across national borders and to the emergence of a complementary set of organizational structures to manage the expanding network of international economic activity and transactions. Strictly speaking, a global economy is one where firms and financial institutions operate transnationally – beyond the confines of national boundaries [unctad.org].

    The synthesis of most definitions is the approach of Anna Zorska, who claims that globalization is the world long-lasting process of integrating more and more countries’ economies over their borders, as the result! Expansion and intensification of their connections (investment, production, and cooperation). This creates the worldwide economic system, which is characterized by high dependence and leading common tasks, realized even by remote countries.

    Nowadays globalization is thought to be the fundamental process of changes in the world economy. It is the next stage of internationalization. Globalization results from the trade liberalization, opening economies processes and reinforcing the worldwide competition. The basis of globalization is the countries integration that consists in linking their economic processes, which include foreign trade, investments and production. It is connected with migration of goods, services, production factors, labor, capital and technology. That causes that competition becomes stronger and there are more (anymore) competitors, who act on the global market. Globalization is also based on information and high technology development.

    Looking from the countries’ position, globalization also influences on their activities and their roles in the contemporary world. The intensification of connections between countries makes national economies more dependant and they become the elements of world economies integration system. They cooperate with each other and coordinate joint undertakings. The deeper integration decreases their sovereignty. That doesn’t mean that they lose their autonomy, history, culture and independence. Countries, being members of regional or world associations, have to keep signed agreements and take into consideration the common wealth in order to contribute to the development of the entire community.

    Economic Development

    Development means different thing to different people. This may be the reason for Idode (1989) to describe development as a problematic concept. According to him, development has been used in many different ways including political, economic and social. In other words, development is a construct of many applications.

    In a view expressed by Okobiah (1984), development involves a process of economic, political and social change in a progress direction towards a better social wellbeing for the member of the society. According to Nwana (1998), development involves harnessing of the resources for the realization of their major objectives, solving their major problems. This means that, development from the foregoing consists of activities required in improving the attitudes and potentials of people. Probably, this justifies the view of Boateng (1990), which described development as the process aimed at improving the living conditions and circumstances of human beings both directly and indirectly. Considering the various views, national development encompasses social, economic, cultural and political development. In other words, the components of national development include social development, economic development, political development and cultural development.

    Social development refers to positive social change. According to Adeniyi (1995) social change is the process through which the patterned network rules and institutions are modified in the course of time. In other words, it refers to the process of transformation of the ways of life and structures of society over-time. The transformation or modification should lead to new behaviour which reflects improvement on the old attitude.

    The first conceptualization is that ‘development’ is a process of structural societal change. Thomas (2000, 2004) referred to this meaning of development as ‘a process of historical change’. This view, of ‘structural transformation’ and ‘long-term transformations of economies and societies’, as Gore noted, is one that predominated in the 1950s and 1960s in particular.

    • Significance of the Study

    One major positive impact of globalization on Africa is that it has made available information on how other countries are governed and the freedoms and rights their people enjoy. It has also opened African countries to intense external scrutiny and exercised pressure for greater transparency, openness and accountability in Africa. Therefore, this study will help readers and other researchers to understand the challenges of globalization, and ways to combat economic inequality in Africa, especially in Nigeria.

    ABSTRACT

    DMBs are the major conduit for the monetary authority monetary policy transmission in Nigeria and the effectiveness of the monetary policy in the economy is contingent on their performance. Consequently, the study was carried out to determine the impact of monetary policy on the performance of DMBs in Nigeria. Annual data of the 17 DMBs in Nigeria was used for the period of2013 to 2019. A causal research design was adopted with a census sampling technique. Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), Exchange Rate (EXR), Money Supply(M2), Cash Reserve Ratio were used as proxies for monetary policy (the explanatory variables) while Return on Equity (ROE) was used as a proxy for DMBs performance(the explained variable),and bank size(M) was used as a moderating variable to determine the moderating impact on the relationship between monetary policy and performance of DMBs in Nigeria. Diagnostic tests conducted include the Shapiro Wilk normality test, the Harris-Tzavalis Unit Root test, Pearson Product Moment Correlation test, Breusch-Pagan and Hausman tests for the determination of the appropriate model. The study made used of panel regression model and the random effect model was adopted based on the Hausman test conducted. The findings of the analysis revealed loan to deposit ratio has a negative insignificant influence on the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria, liquidity ratio is positively significant to the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria and monetary policy rate has a negative significance towards the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria. It was therefore recommended that; the monetary authority through the deposit money banks should maintain a good ratio of their loans towards the deposits of the bank in order to always meet up with the demand-deposit needs; the incumbent government of Nigeria should employ a step by step approach systematically in order to coordinate the country’s monetary policy; liquidity ratio standard so as to encourage financial integration with all sectors of the economy that will enhance positive outcome to the nation.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    • Background of the Study

    Prior to Nigeria’s banking reform of 2004, there were plethora of commercial banks, known today as legacy banks, in the country which were characterised by poor performances either due to inefficient management, inadequate capital, poor utilization of available resources or poor supervision by the regulatory authority. 1999 saw the liberalization and the adoption of the universal banking model. While the 2004 recapitalization reform led to massive consolidations, the recapitalization was meant to correct structural and operational weaknesses that were commonplace in the sector which had also hampered efficient financial intermediation and significantly affected performance.

    The reform brought about a great change in the sector. Consequently, it became even clearer that the banking industry is an important sector which must not fail because it is charged with the responsibility of allocating capital resources as well as risk distribution of future flows in an economy, globally.

     

     

    Therefore, banks are the biggest intermediaries through which the surplus and deficit units in any economy interact to exchange financial value indirectly. When the surplus units make deposits in the banks, they are given out as loans to customers or investors (deficit units) with an interest or profit (in the case of Jaiz and Taj banks) charge on the loan; Therefore, since DMBs are the pivotal medium for the administration of monetary policy due to its role in any financial system cum economy, the Nigerian government saddle the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) with the responsibility of regulating its activities which is partly because any bankruptcy that could happen in the financial sector has a contagion effect that can lead to bank runs, crises and may bring about an overall financial crisis and economic misfortunes (David and Vlad, 2002).

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    For the CBN to carry out its regulatory functions effectively, it employs monetary policies as the primary tools to regulate the banking sector. The monetary policies are made up of different types of instruments that are used to regulate the operations of banks in any given economy; and since this is an external factor to the banks, the tools are meant to influence banks’ activities which by extension impacts on its performance. The way and manner these factors are applied to banks vary from one country to the other and has a traceable relationship to the state of the particular country’s economy. In stable economies, the tools are rarely altered and vice versa. Economic activities, to a large extent, depend on these tools especially in countries where the capital market is not fully developed.

    In Nigeria, monetary policy instruments include the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR); the Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) now Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) since 11th December, 2006; Liquidity Ratio (LR), Money Supply (M1, M2 and M3), and foreign exchange rate which have gone through various forms of changes in keeping with the fluctuations in economic indices. Each time these instruments change, bank operations are certainly affected. However, whether these changes in monetary policy have a significant impact on the performance of Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) depends on the outcomes of an investigation.

     

    For instance, the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) influences the rate of interest (Standing Lending Rate) charged on loans advanced to DMBs (through the Discount Window) by the monetary authority. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) determines and makes public the MPR whenever they meet, usually once in two months. A positive movement in the MPR denotes a positive movement in the bank’s lending cost, thus; leading to a reduction in money lending. This consequently leads to decline in DMBs performance and vice versa.

     

     

    Money supply and exchange rate are also regulated by the monetary policy in order to achieve certain desired objectives such as reduction in the level of inflation, promotion of economic growth, achieving full employment level, maintenance of healthy balance of payment, sustenance of growth in the economy, increase in industrialization and economic stability, etc. During low economic phases, money supply is increased by the Central Bank which in turn leads to a decline in interest and enhances the circulation of money (Meshak & Nyamute, 2016).

     

     

    Like every other business, the continual survival of banks in an economy is contingent on its performance which in turn completely depends on its profitability. Banks’ profitability is usually assessed by the performance of the bank financially using Return on Assets (ROA), the Net Interest Margin (NIM), and the Return on Equity (ROE). However, DMBs performance in Nigeria has never remained the same. There have been fluctuations in their earnings, equities, assets, etc. just as there have also been series of movements in the monetary policy instruments. The MPR has fluctuated from 12% in 2013 and was highest in 2017 at 14%; it then dropped to 12.5% in 2020. The exchange rate (EXR: N/$) also experienced similar fluctuations, alongside the money supply and CRR, which is currently at N379.5/$1 in February, 2021 as against N155.2/$1 in December, 2013.

     

     

    This study focusses on the impact of monetary policy on banking sector in Nigeria and the pertinent question to answer include whether CBN monetary policy instruments have any statistically significant impact on the performance of DMBs in Nigeria as well as the magnitude of such impact if it does exist. It is the answer to these questions that this research study seeks to provide.

    • Statement of the Problem

    Over the past three decades, Nigeria has undergone significant economic transformations, accompanied by shifts in monetary policy and developments within the banking sector. However, amidst these changes, several challenges and concerns have emerged, warranting a comprehensive investigation. This research aims to address the following key issues: Effectiveness of Monetary Policy, Banking Sector Stability, Financial Inclusion and Accessibility, Impact on Economic Growth, and Policy Implementation Challenges. By addressing these key issues, this research seeks to provide valuable insights into the interplay between monetary policy and the banking sector in Nigeria, offering recommendations for policymakers, regulators, and stakeholders to enhance economic stability and sustainable development.

    • Objectives of the Study
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    The major objective of this study is to investigate the effect of monetary policy and the banking sector in Nigeria. The specific objectives are to;

    1. ascertain the effect of monetary policy rate on the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria.
    2. examine the effect of liquidity ratio on the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria, and
    3. investigate the relationship between loan to deposit ratio and the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria.

    1.4 Research Questions

    This research will be guided by the following research questions;

    1. What is the effect of monetary policy rate on the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria?
    2. To what extent has liquidity ratio affected the total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria?
    3. What is the relationship between loan to deposit ratio and total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria?

    1.5 Research Hypotheses

    Ho1: There is no significant relationship between monetary policy rate total assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria.

    Ho2: There is no significant relationship between liquidity ratio and total assets of            deposit money banks in Nigeria.

     

     

    Ho3: There is no significant relationship between loan to deposit ratio and total               assets of deposit money banks in Nigeria.

    1.6 Scope of the study

    The study covers monetary policy and the banking sector in Nigeria between the periods 1990 to 2022.The variables in consideration are of total assets of deposit money banks as the dependent variable, loan to deposit ratio,liquidity ratio and monetary policy rate as the independent variables.

    • Significance of the Study

    The study is of immense importance to the Nigerian Government as it will assist policy makers in the formulation of sound policies relating to DMBs and other financial institutions; also, DMBs’ management will be very much informed by the findings of the study because it will make known to them how monetary policy and bank’s size influence the performance of banks. Furthermore, the study will make the general public to appreciate the influence the monetary policy of the CBN is exerting on DMBs performance; and lastly, the study is expected to contribute to the existing literature in the field of monetary policies and future scholars that may want to use this research as a basis for further research in the area of monetary policy theories.

    • Limitations of the Study

    The most common challenges when using secondary data arises from the source of data. Therefore, the researcher ensured that the study data was gotten from authorized sources which include the Central Bank of Nigeria for the monetary policy instruments and Deposit Money Banks’ websites for their annual financial reports. In addition, the researcher proposed the use of yearly data, however, not all the data on the study variables were in yearly form. In addressing this, the researcher transformed all non-yearly data to yearly form using monthly weighted average where necessary. Another limitation of this study is the time constraint and the stress involve in combining office work and the research work.

    • Organization of the Study

    The research work is structured such that the first Chapter provides the research background, objectives, significance of the study, scope, limitations of the study and the definition of terms. The second Chapter avails the literature review in terms of the conceptual framework, theories supporting the study, and the empirical review. The third Chapter explains the methodology of the study which gives information on the research design, target population, data collection instruments and data analysis. The fourth Chapter presents the data analysis; result presentation and interpretation. The fifth Chapter centers on the summary, conclusion, policy recommendation and suggestion for further research.

    • Definition of Terms
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    Liquidity: The ability of a bank to meet its current obligations when they are due, and is normally a short-term debt measure.

    Interest Rate: It is the price of money. It is the opportunity cost of holding money and the return for parting with liquidity.

    Narrow Money (M1): Is made up of all currencies in circulation and demand deposits belonging to different households and businesses with DMBs. It is the sum of all paper notes and coins in circulation and balances in current accounts used for effective payment.

    Broad Money (M2): In Nigeria, it is made up of M1 plus time deposits and saving deposits. Financial System: It is the channel or conduit through which the savings of surplus units (e.g., households) flow to the deficit units (e.g., business organizations).

    Monetary System: A system whose main function is the provision of adequate stock of money or currencies i.e., notes and coins for the economy.

    Bank Size: The size of a bank is measured by its total assets. For the purpose of this study, bank size is measured using the log of its total assets.

    Money Supply: This is the total stock of money that is circulating in an economy. It includes safe assets, such as cash, coins, and balances held in checking and savings accounts that businesses and individuals can use to make payments or hold as short-term investments.

    Return on Equity: This represents the rate of return earned on the funds invested in a bank by its stockholders.

    CBN Exchange Rate (EXR): Exchange rate is the price of one currency in terms of another currency. It refers to the rate the CBN sells foreign currency to MDBs.

    Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR): It is the portion of deposit that DMBs are required to keep with the Central Bank. For the purpose of this study, the annual CRR is measured using  months weighted average.

    Monetary Policy Rate: It is the rate used to determine all other rates that CBN used to lend funds to or accept deposits from DMBs. It is usually set at a level which is consistent with the price stability objective of the Central Bank and it has a corridor. The upper bound of the corridor is used as Standing Lending Rate (SLR) while the lower bound of the corridor is the Standing Deposit Rate (SDR).

    DMBs Performance: It is defined strictly on the financial perspective. It is the ability of DMBs to make profits on their assets and or investment. For the purpose of this study, DMBs performance is measured using Return on Equity (ROE).

    Monetary Policy: Monetary policy is the deliberate controls of the supply, availability and cost of money or rate of interest to attain a set of objectives such as promoting economic growth, achieving full employment level, reduction in the level of inflation, maintenance of healthy balance of payment, sustenance of growth in the economy, increase in industrialization and economic stability. The monetary policy tools for this study are CBN Monetary Policy Rate, Money Supply (M2), Cash Reserve Ratio and CBN Interest Rate or Standing Lending Rate.


    Pages:  94

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF               

    Chapters: 1-5                                          

    Source: Imsuinfo                            

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • Globalization and its challenges; assessing the effectiveness of international organization in addressing global challenges

    ABSTRACT

    This research delves into the intricate relationship between globalization and the myriad challenges it presents on a global scale. The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of international organizations in navigating and mitigating these challenges. Contrary to concerns that globalization might impede the efficacy of such organizations, our findings reveal an optimistic perspective. The majority of respondents strongly disagree with the notion that globalization hinders international organizations, indicating a prevailing sentiment that globalization serves as a catalyst for these entities to adapt and effectively address emerging challenges. Identifying key global challenges exacerbated by globalization, the study underscores the significance of climate change, economic inequality, and public health crises. The acknowledgment of regional variations in the manifestation of these challenges emphasizes the need for targeted and context-specific approaches in addressing their impacts. Encouragingly, respondents overwhelmingly express confidence in the adaptability of international organizations. This positive perception reflects a belief in the resilience and capability of these organizations to evolve in response to the dynamic global landscape. The findings underscore the importance of recognizing and leveraging the strengths of international organizations as pivotal players in addressing contemporary challenges.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    • BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

     

    Trading is an indispensable part of all international businesses, whether the company markets in one country or on a global market. Goods are produced in one country, distributed to another, and moved across borders to enter the distribution system of the target market(s). Most countries control the movement of goods crossing their borders, whether leaving (exports) or entering (imports). Some of the basic export and import documents are tariffs, quotas among others (Aimiumu, 2004; Adesoye, Ajike&Maku, 2015). They are barriers to the free flow of goods between independent sovereignties and are requirements that must be met by either the exporter or the importer or both. In order to ensure good trading relationship between countries and easy movement of goods, services and human capital, trade barriers are reduced or removed which is otherwise known as the economic globalization or globalization. Globalization is the process of international integration arising from the exchange of world ideas, products views and innovations (Omojolaibi, Mesagan&Nsofor 2016). It is the intensification of cross-border trade and increased financial and foreign direct investment flows among nations, promoted by rapid advances in and liberalization of communication and information technology (Aninat, 2002). It conjures the picture of a borderless world with greater economic integration that enhances the living standards of people across the globe. The foregoing shows that globalization is the integration of economies worldwide through trade, finance flows and widespread adoption of information technologies and internetworking. Hence, it is an increasing interconnected and inter dependent world in international trade management, administration, communication, investment and finance.

    Globalization has over the years been widely celebrated as one of the keys to economic growth and development. The integration of the world economy through the progressive globalization of trade and finance has reached unprecedented level most especially in the recent times, surpassing the pre-world war I peak (Lall,  et  al.  2007).  The  international  competitiveness  brought  by  the  new  wave  of globalization has brought tremendous progress to the world economy. The global economy has continued to witness vigorous expansion since the first half of 2007 with growth running above 5 percent (IMF, 2007). In the face of the new wave of globalization, no country wishes to be left out in the distribution of the benefits resulting from trade, foreign investment and financial integration (international capital flows).

    However, Adesoye, Ajike and Maku (2015) have argued forcefully that many highly globalized developing countries have not been able to profit from globalization and are still facing the same problems they have  been  facing  for  many  decades.  For  instance,  Nigeria  had  embraced globalization since  the 1980s  with the expectation  that enhanced free  trade, competitiveness, financial  integration,  foreign  investment  and  technological  advancement  would  ensure  theachievement of rapid growth of the economy. Contrary to expectation, the growth pattern of the economy  since  the  1980s  has  been  very  disappointing  with  poverty  incidence  escalating. According to  the World Bank (2002) report, about 65 percent of the Nigeria population lives below the poverty line,  with  Nigeria being ranked among  the  poorest countries  of  the world, despite its vast economic potentials as well as its attendant natural resources.As  developing  countries  attempt  to  open  up  their  economies  in  recent  years,  they  are  concerned  about globalization and its different effects on economic growth especially as poverty, inequality, environment and cultural dominance are increasing everyday(Samimi and Jenatabadi, 2014). As an important component of the developing world, Nigeria is faced with opportunities  and costs  of globalization.  Although Nigeria is endowed with natural resources, these resources are not being utilized appropriately. It is pertinent to highlight that exploring new ways to harness the Nigeria’s resource endowments more efficiently is important and necessary for the country to improve its economic situation and position in the global sphere.

     

    1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS

    Globalization is often blamed for the rising incidence of poverty and inequality observed in most third world countries and regions where the developed countries use their competitive advantage to boost their share of world trade and finance, and so largely benefit from globalization (UNCTAD, 2003a). On the other hand, underdeveloped and developing countries could be losing out as they experience a worsening of existing imbalances and distortions in the global economy (Collier & Dollar, cited in Onwuka&Eguavoen, 2007).This therefore raises  a  fundamental  question  on  the distributional effects of globalization which is often polarized between two points of view. While the proponents of globalization argue that globalization leads to a rising tide of income which raises all boats, the opposing group argues that although globalization may improve the overall income  level, its  benefits  are  not  equally shared  amongst individual  countries  of the  world. However, while there is a general consensus that the third world countries (Nigeria inclusive) can benefit from integration with the global economy, an unresolved issue is that of why the global poverty and stunted growth remain predominantly a third world phenomenon.Adesoye et al (2015) have argued forcefully that many highly globalized developing countries have not been able to profit from globalization and are still facing the same problems that they have been facing for many decades. For instance, Nigeria had embraced globalization since 1980s with the expectation that enhanced free trade, competitiveness, financial integration, foreign investment and technological advancement would ensure the achievement of rapid growth and development of the economy. Contrary to what is expected, the development trend of Nigeria from the 1980s has not been encouraging because poverty incidences are escalating. According to the world bank (2002) report about 65 percent of the Nigeria population lives below poverty line, with Nigeria being ranked among the poorest countries of the world, despite its vast economic potentials, attendant natural resources and most importantly its participation and membership in the league of globalised nations. In this view of this therefore, The need to carry out this research, stems from the gap in researcher’s conclusion on globalization and its challenges; assessing the effectiveness of international organization in addressing global challenges. Thus this research will emphatically ascertain the impact of international organization in addressing global challenges.

    1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

    The broad objective of the study is to examine the impact of international organization in addressing global challenges. The specific objectives are to

    1. To analyze the ways in which globalization has contributed to the emergence and evolution of global challenges in the contemporary world.
    2. To identify and categorize the key global challenges resulting from or exacerbated by globalization, and to explore their manifestation across different regions.
    3. To assess the extent to which international organizations have adapted to the changing nature of global challenges brought about by globalization.
      • RESEARCH QUESTIONS

    The following research question guides the achievement of the above stated objectives:

    1. How has globalization impacted the emergence and evolution of global challenges in the contemporary world?
    2. What are the key global challenges resulting from or exacerbated by globalization, and how do they manifest across different regions?
    3. To what extent have international organizations adapted to the evolving nature of global challenges brought about by globalization?

    1.5 STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESES

    The study is guided by the following null hypotheses:

    H01: Globalization has no significant impact on the emergence and evolution of global challenges in the contemporary world.

    H02: Globalization does not contribute to the exacerbation or generation of key global challenges, and their manifestations do not differ significantly across regions.

    H03: International organizations have not significantly adapted to the evolving nature of global challenges brought about by globalization.

    1.6 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

    The study seeks to ascertain globalization and its challenges; assessing the effectiveness of international organization in addressing global challenges.

    1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

    This research endeavor seeks to empirically ascertain globalization and its challenges; assessing the effectiveness of international organization in addressing global challenges, Thus, findings from this research will be of immense benefit to the government, as it will give them a better idea and outlook on the globalization and how it impacts various economy. The study will also be of importance to investors as the data indices employed to carry out this research will serve as a guide as to how globalization has performed over the years, thus the research will serve as a guide to them. Finally, thus research will be of immense significance to policy makers and the monetary authorities as recommendation made here will help in formulating better policies and regulatory frame works to help improve and further deepen globalization.


    Pages:  57

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF               

    Chapters: 1-5                                          

    Source: Imsuinfo                            

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • Impact Of Entrepreneurial Skills In Reducing Youth Unemployment In A Depressed Economy; A Case Study Of Abc Transport Company In Imo State (2019- Till Date)

    ABSTRACT

    This study examined Impact of Entrepreneurial Skills in Reducing Youth Unemployment in a Depressed Economy with reference to ABC Transport Company in Imo State. The broad objectives of this study is to examine the possible ways of eradicating unemployment through the introduction of entrepreneurial skills. The study focus on what Schumpeter’s theory referred to as the “concentric circles” which is a practical approach to resolving unemployment situation in an economy. The study is a descriptive survey design. Questionnaire items were distributed to 160 respondents to gather factual information about the topic. Their responses were tested using appropriate statistic tools like the simple percentage and the chi- square method. The study found that there are roles entrepreneurial skills and businesses play in youth employment in Nigeria through entrepreneurial development. Furthermore, it also shows that youths in Imo state can be given basic training on how best to establish and grow business enterprise in local communities within the state. The study therefore recommends that government should remove corruption and greed and formulate policies that will promote the success of entrepreneurship and free enterprise; government should assist entrepreneurs through regular marketing workshops and seminars in conjunction with the manufacturers association of Nigeria (MAN) and chambers of commerce and industries.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    1.1 Background to the Study

    Before embracing the colonial government in Nigeria unemployment was a rare phenomenon because people were highly entrepreneurial and productivity engaged. In pre and post independent in Nigeria, the Igbo ethnic groups were recognized internationally for its culture of entrepreneurship and enterprise development (Dana, 1995). The Yoruba’s and Hausa were not left out too. Nigeria like most developing nations of the world is faced with myriad of problems and realities which include poverty, unemployment, conflicts and diseases. These situations pose great challenges to the very existence of individual in most developing nations thereby, calling for the training of educated youths, men and women who can function effectively in the society in which they live in.

    However, successive administrations in Nigeria introduced formal education which enabled people to have the opportunity to being employed in the civil service after graduation. As such, the system destroyed and self-reliance, self-employment and entrepreneurial skills of Nigerians as they became permanently dependent on the colonial masters (Nick,2008; Raimi,2010) this led to massive unemployment and craze in the contemporary times for “all-ready-made jobs”. It is on the premise that this study seeks for the development of entrepreneurship in order to sustain and economy of high-level unemployment reduction. Nigeria is a blessed country with numerous business and investment potentials due to the abundant variant and dynamic human and natural resources it possesses. Nigerians have made remarkable achievements in diverse fields such as science, technology, academics, business and entertainment. Thus, entrepreneurship activities and innovative ingenuity in Nigeria have developed enterprises in the following areas; agriculture/ Agro-allied activities where there are food stuffs, restaurant, fast foods vending etc. in the area of solid minerals there are quarrying, perm stone cutting/ polishing and gushing engineering. In power and transport, there are power generations, haulages business (cargo and passengers), in the area of information and telecom business, there are manufacturing and repairs of GSM accessories, in hospitality and tourism business, there are hotels, accommodation, resorts centers, cinemas, film and home video production; in oil and gas business, there are construction and maintenance of pipelines, drilling, refining by-products, etc. In spite of the fact that has been regarded as the bedrock for employment generation and technological development in Nigeria, the sector nevertheless has had its own fair share of neglect with concomitant unpleasant impacts on the economy.

    History very often has a direct impact on what the nation is facing in the present. Entrepreneurship in Nigeria today is not what it used to be. Majority of Nigerians used to be entrepreneurs. Before the colonization era, a lot of Nigerians were majorly involved in trading. In fact, the wealthiest at the time were traders. Even before money was generally accepted as the ledger tender, people exchanged what they had in surplus for what they don’t have. Entrepreneurship was a way of life for most people then. Nigeria always was full of people with a business mindset and Nigerians always had a nigh moral standard and value system for doing business.

    During the colonial era, the mode of entrepreneurship changed. The colonial masters brought their goods and made Nigerians their middlemen. Then came formal education and the companies established by the colonial masters. A lot of young Nigerians were employed by these companies. As many Nigerians began to accept formal education, most people were being trained to join the labour force and not to be entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurial mindset began to fade away.

    Against this backdrop, entrepreneurship when and it gallantly developed in Nigeria will take his pride of place in reducing unemployment and thus generating employment among Nigerian youths especially the graduates and the place the economy on a proper footing. It is in this respect that this paper seeks to investigate the connections between entrepreneurship, unemployment and employment generation in Imo state.

    1.2 Statement of the Problem.

    There exist diverse economic, social and political problems at different magnitudes facing nations of the world and the third world countries are not excluded. These diverse economic, social and political problems have adversely affected the sustainable development of the countries, including the high unemployment rate they are currently facing (Williams and Michael, 2012). Unemployment has become a global phenomenon of the 21st century; the problem is becoming more complex each passing year in Nigeria. Unemployment, under-employment and rural-urban migration have enveloped the Nigerian labour market. This has been compounded by frightening number of graduates from polytechnic’s, colleges of education, mono-technics and universities that leave school each year. This has increased the rate of social vices like robbery, kidnapping, prostitution, human trafficking, child abuse and unfair labour practices experienced in Nigeria by the unemployed youths.

    National manpower board (2009) opined that Nigerian labour market could barely absorb 10% of the over 3.8 million persons turned out by the Nigeria educational system annually. The problem of this study revolved around the high rate of unemployment and low productivity among the citizens of Nigeria. The present situation seems to give an impression of economic insecurity as a result of failure to properly engage people in the production process. This study was therefore necessary to fill the gap by examine the entrepreneurial development and urgent social intervention for all government strategies/ programmes to have employment generation as an output towards economic security. The question remains: given that the economy of Nigeria is producing below its potential, can entrepreneurship education and urgent social intervention guarantee high unemployment reduction?

    As the need and call for entrepreneurship increases day by day, the development of entrepreneurship has been stalled in the last few years. This is because of the problems affecting and limiting its development.

    Many Nigerian entrepreneurs face a lot of challenges. Here are the major ones that have been affecting the development of entrepreneurship in Nigeria.

    1. Lack Of Capital: There are thousands of Nigerians with wonderful ideas that could be turned into a real business. However, most of them lack the capital to push their ideas into reality. The lack of capital is the number one reason why the development of entrepreneurship has not improved over the years.
    2. Difficulty In Securing Loans from Financial Institutions: In the first point, we established that the first problem most Nigerians face is the lack of capital. Most people then try to turn to banks and other financial institution to secure loan to fund their idea of business. But getting a loan is very difficult and most times impossible for average Nigerians who are looking for funds to start up a business or who already have a small business. The reason for this is that the banks and financial institutions feel it is a huge risk lending money to them. Financial institutions are not sure if entrepreneur will be able to pay back the loan.

    Another major reason why securing a loan is very difficult is the requirement needed for securing the loans. Most of the financial institutions demand huge collateral and high-interest rate that small business owners or start-ups cannot afford. This discourages most Nigerians entrepreneurs and kills many promising ideas.

    1. Poor State of Infrastructure in Nigeria: The lack of good infrastructural facilities is another major problem affecting the development of entrepreneurship in Nigeria. The number one issue of infrastructure affecting entrepreneurship is the unstable power supply that has forced a lot of businesses to close down. Most entrepreneurs have to rely on guarantors to run their businesses. They have to spend a lot of money on fuel to run their generators. Also, lack of good roads and transport system is another infrastructure in Nigeria makes the cost of running a business or company high. Most small businesses and start-ups cannot afford it.
    2. Unstable State of Nigeria Economy: The state of the Nigerian economy is also a major challenge for entrepreneurs in Nigeria. The state of a country and its economy plays a significant impact on the level of entrepreneurship in any country. The socio-economic problems and the unstable economy of Nigeria has killed a lot of businesses in the last couple years. All these mixed with political instability is not helping businesses at all.
    3. Inconsistent Government Policies: There is no continuity in Nigeria government especially when there is a change in governance. Unfortunately, there are no good policies that could create necessary conditions for the development of entrepreneurship in the country. The government needs to create policies and an environment that will give more freedom and possibilities for entrepreneurs.
    4. Poor Knowledge on How to Run a Business: Not all the problems are from the government or capital related. Another problem is that most people don’t know how to manage and grow a business properly. They don’t seem to learn or have the resources to learn how to manage and grow a business.
    5. Inadequate Planning and Poor Executive: This are the result of the poor knowledge or how to run a business. Most people don’t plan properly before they start their business. They don’t make research about their business, the market for the business, the cost of production, etc. many do not even make a business plan. So, after they start a business, they get stuck and the business fails. Also, a lot of people start off the wrong path and eventually the business ends up failing.
    6. Lack Of Patience and Greediness: A lot of new business owners and young entrepreneurs are looking to make money quickly. They are more money oriented and not entrepreneurship oriented. In fact, a lot of people go into business because of the money and they want it fast. Many people want quick money but as a result, they don’t have enough patience to grow a business that has the potential of becoming big. Also, due to the desire for quick returns and greediness, a lot of people try to find easier means of making more money in business and ends up getting due to;
    7. High Risk Involved in Starting a New Business: Many are afraid of the risks and give up the idea to start a new business. However, it is important to understand that business and risk go hand in hand. No pain, no gain.
    8. Lack Of Entrepreneurial Mindset: This is the result of the mentality that was brought instilled in us in the last decades. This is how the colonial era influenced the mindset of many Nigerians. As we have already mentioned, most people were taught to be in the labour force and jot to be entrepreneurs.

    1.3 Research Objective

    The objectives of this study are:

    1. To examine the possibility of eradicating unemployment in Imo state through entrepreneurial development.
    2. To also examine the level at which different entrepreneurial development programmes has been able to lessen the unemployment problem in Imo state.
    3. To determine the extent to which basic training can motivate the youths to establish and grow business enterprises in their communities.

    1.4 Research Questions

    1. Is there any possible way of eradicating unemployment in Imo state?
    2. To what level can different entrepreneurial development programmes reduce unemployment rate in Imo state?
    3. To what degree can youth be given basic training on how best to grow and establish business enterprises in local communities?

    1.5 Research Hypothesis

    For the purpose of this study, the following hypothesis were formula to guide this study;

    HO1. There is no possibility of curbing youth unemployment problem in Imo state through entrepreneurial development.

    HO2. There is possibility of curbing youth unemployment problem in Imo state through entrepreneurial development.

    HO3. Different entrepreneurial development programmes cannot be able to reduce unemployment problem in Imo state.

    HO4. Different entrepreneurial development programmes can be able to reduce unemployment problem in Imo state.

    HO5. Entrepreneurship basic training cannot motivate the youths to establish and grow their business enterprises.

    HO6. Entrepreneurship basic training can motivate the youths to establish and grow their business enterprises.

    1.6 Significance of the Study

    Studying the impact of entrepreneurial skills on reducing youth unemployment in a depressed economy is crucial for several reasons:

    1. Addressing high youth unemployment: Youth unemployment is a persistent challenge in many economies, particularly during periods of economic depression. By studying the impact of entrepreneurial skills, we can understand how equipping young people with the necessary knowledge and abilities to start and run their own businesses can contribute to reducing unemployment rates among this demographic.
    2. Fostering economic resilience: Depressed economies often struggle with limited job opportunities, low investment, and reduced economic activity. Introducing entrepreneurial skills among the youth can help create a culture of innovation and self-reliance, leading to the establishment of new businesses and the generation of employment opportunities. This, in turn, contributes to economic resilience and can help lift the economy out of depression.
    3. Promoting self-employment: Entrepreneurship offers an alternative path to traditional employment, empowering individuals to create their own jobs rather than relying solely on existing opportunities. By studying entrepreneurial skills, we can identify the factors that enable young people to start and sustain their own ventures. This knowledge can inform policies and initiatives aimed at promoting self-employment as a viable option for youth in a depressed economy.
    4. Stimulating economic growth: Entrepreneurship plays a crucial role in driving economic growth and development. By studying the impact of entrepreneurial skills on reducing youth unemployment, we can gain insights into how entrepreneurial activity can spur economic revitalization in a depressed economy. Successful entrepreneurial ventures can lead to job creation, increased productivity, and the development of new industries, ultimately contributing to overall economic growth.
    5. Enhancing youth empowerment and well-being: Unemployment among young people can have negative consequences on their well-being, self-esteem, and future prospects. By equipping them with entrepreneurial skills, we provide them with tools for self-empowerment and economic independence. Through entrepreneurship, young individuals can pursue their passions, exercise creativity, and contribute meaningfully to society, which can positively impact their overall well-being.
    6. Informing policy and educational interventions: Studying the impact of entrepreneurial skills on reducing youth unemployment can inform the development of effective policies and educational interventions. Governments, educational institutions, and other stakeholders can use research findings to design targeted programs that equip young people with the necessary skills, knowledge, and support to embark on entrepreneurial endeavors. Such initiatives can provide practical training, mentorship, access to financing, and networking opportunities, enhancing the chances of success for young entrepreneurs.

    In conclusion, studying the impact of entrepreneurial skills on reducing youth unemployment in a depressed economy is significant because it addresses a pressing societal issue, fosters economic resilience, promotes self-employment, stimulates economic growth, enhances youth empowerment and well-being, and informs policy and educational interventions. By understanding the relationship between entrepreneurship and youth unemployment, we can develop effective strategies to alleviate unemployment rates and drive economic recovery.


    Pages:  63

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF               

    Chapters: 1-5                                          

    Source: Imsuinfo

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • Economic Recession And Cyber Crime A Study Of Owerri Municipal

    Abstract

    The study investigated economic recession and cyber crime in Owerri Municipal in Imo State. Four research questions guided this study. The survey research design was adopted in the conduct of the study. The study area was Owerri Imo State Nigeria. The population of the study was comprised 301, 657 residents. Taro Yamane’s formula was used to determine the population. The instruments used for the study were a questionnaire. The questionnaire was subjected to face and content validity. Simple percentages and frequency table was used to analyze data in respect of the research questions.  The study revealed the relationship between economic recession and youth involvement in cyber crime, the implication of recession in Owerri Municipal in Imo State, the causes of cyber-crime in Owerri Municipal in Imo State and the consequences of cyber-crime in Owerri Municipal in Imo State. The study recommended Improving awareness and competence in information security and sharing of best practices at the national level through the development of a culture of Cyber security at national level. Formalize the coordination and prioritization of cyber security research and development activities; disseminate vulnerability advisories and threat warnings in a timely manner.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    • Background to the Study

    The effect of economic recession have on crime especially amongst youths whom according to demography analysis are from the ages of 15 to 35 years and who form the working population of a country. The question recession is often asked during periods of economic under performance, such as the recession that occurred in the United States in 2008. The economic theory of crime as postulated by Kurtz (2015), common intuition suggests that a bad economy will leave some out of work and will decrease annual income for many. Some criminologists and social scientists theorize that the rise of unemployment and decrease in income that results from a recession will cause crime levels to increase as some individuals turn to criminal activity to provide for their basic necessities. If this theory is correct, then policymakers have an even strong incentive to prevent recessions from occurring or lasting too long, as the poor economy will compound societal problems by driving crime levels up. This is so because we have seen increase in cult activities, kidnapping and robbery in Nigeria. Killing and maiming of innocent people have continued unabatedly across the states. Research reveals that scores of young men and women lose their lives daily to ritualists, kidnappers and other criminals. The social media and newspapers are replete with scary stories of crime of various dimensions being committed across Nigeria. Nigeria’s economy has recently slipped into recession and inflation is already at an eleven-year high of 16.5 per cent which leads youths in cyber-crime in other live up to expectations (Vanguard, 2016).

    Information and communication technology (ICT) systems are used virtually in all walks of life. They are used at home for personal uses, and at various offices for business and commercial uses (Maitanmi, 2013). Most organisations, institutions, agencies and government today, depend on computer networks to carry out both simple and complex business operations, engage in technological advances, and perform interdependent financial transactions, and also disseminate classified information (Ajewole, 2010). Further, ICT systems and computer networks enhance electronic commerce, mobile commerce, advances in medicine, research and innovations and social networking. In fact, ICT systems and computer networks are now regarded as basic essential utilities like electricity, water or telephone, without which, organisations and citizens would struggle (Abdulhamid et al, 2011).

    The country, Nigeria, the self-acclaimed giant of Africa is enmeshed in an emulating syndrome in the ICT world called cybercrime. Its manifestation is pandemic and difficult to eradicate (Morley and Parker, 2007). The task of re-stigmatizing cybercrime and re-dignifying honesty are not as easy as that of institutionalizing a deterrence mechanism like code of conduct bureau, Independent Corrupt Practice Commission (ICPC), Economic and financial crime commission (EFCC) and many more. This is after many years at the bottom of the ladder of the corrupt nations of the world, which is based on some index set by the Transparency International (TI), an anticorruption crusader group.

    Corruption the father of cybercrime take many form in Nigeria from the police man that receives favour from government, student that buy gift for lectures or pay school staff to pass examination or receive certificate Teachers/ Lecturer that organise special centres during public examination to parent that give token to their children before they can help out with an assignment (Tade and Aliyu, 2011). To advanced fee fraud popularly called “419”, which has given birth to cybercrime, which could be a possible cause of economic recession.

    Economic recession is a business cycle contraction, and it refers to a general slowdown in economic activity for two consecutive quarters. During recession, there is usually a decline in certain macroeconomic indicators such as GDP, employment, investment spending, capacity utilization, household income, business income, and inflation, with the attendant increase in the rate of unemployment. Technically, when economy experienced at least two consecutive quarters of negative growth in GDP, thus the economy is said to be in recession. GDP is the market value of all legitimately recognized final goods and services produced in the country in a given period of time, usually one year (CBN, 2012).

    With the credit crisis affecting consumers and businesses, spammers and cyber-criminals sought to take advantage of the resulting panic and uncertainty. To capitalize, spammers increased the number of financerelated emails, including phishing attacks targeting banks and credit unions, lottery scams, loan and job offers and other financial enticements. In late 2008, speculation about the future of many global banks ensued. Phishers exploited this uncertainty by increasing the volume of phishing emails targeting banks involved in proposed mergers and acquisitions, making reference to news of anticipated takeovers in their messages. Scammers swiftly updated their templates to reference other banks as news of which banks were involved in mergers changed. Security researchers have issued a security alert that reveals a direct correlation between the recent stock market volatility and the growth of new threats. According to the global IT security vendor, the two are tied together much more closely than previously thought and as the recent stock market instability has accelerated, so has the volume of targeted cyber attacks and their relative impact on the economy. In addition, security analysts believe the recent spike in malware could be related to cyber-criminals now having fewer possible targets as a result of consolidation within the banking industry.

     

    In (Maitanmi, 2013) cybercrime was defined as a type of crime committed by criminals who make use of a computer as a tool and the internet as a connection in order to reach a variety of objectives such as illegal downloading of music files and films, piracy, spam mailing and the likes. Cybercrime evolves from the wrong application or abuse of internet services. The concept of cybercrime is historical. It was discovered that the first published report of cybercrime occurred on the mainframe computer in the 1960s (Maitanmi, 2013). Since these computers were not connected to the internet or with other computers, the crime was committed by the employers (insider) in the company, hence it was referred to as computer crime rather than cybercrime.

    In Nigeria, cybercrimes are perform by people of all ages ranging from young to old, but in most instances the young. Several youth engage in cybercrime with the aim of emerging as the best hacker, or as a profit making venture since the tools for hacking in our modern world has become affordable by many. Mbaskei in his publication on “Cybercrimes: Effect on Youth Development” noted that secret agents of the UPS (United Parcel Service) smashed a record scam with a face value of $2.1billion (about N252 billion) in Lagos. The interception was done within three months. Some of the instruments uncovered by the UPS were documents like Wal – Mart Money orders, Bank of America cheques, U.S postal service cheques and American Express traveler’s cheques. This record scam is made possible as a result of the large number of young people who now see Cybercrimes or internet fraud as a source of livelihood (Broadhurst and Grabosky, 2015). Nigeria itself is beset by high rate of poverty- people living below the breadline, high unemployment and corruption. Its people are willing to do anything, legal or otherwise, in order to make a living. However, since there is no clear legislation in Nigeria about cybercrime, it has become one of those grey areas increasingly exploited by unemployed young adults seeking an easy route to riches hence the emergence of a subculture called cyber criminals (Abdulhamid et al, 2011).

    1.2 Statement of the Problem

    The contribution of internet to the development of the nation has been marred by the evolution of a new wave of crime. The internet has also become an environment where the most lucrative and safest crimes thrive. As a result, a good number of Nigerian youths, both in-school and out-of-school children, including those of employable age engage cybercrime as an alternative route to success. With cybercrime flourishing as it appears, adolescents who share neighbourhoods with perceived successful cybercriminals often see them as models worthy of emulation. While a huge amount of energy has been put in to curb the menace of cybercriminals, its radicalization effects on Nigerian youths has been largely ignored both in literature and in government interventions. Although a good  studies have attributed youth involvement in cybercrime to poverty and unemployment and other structurally induced vices, very few  have explained why those you never work would chose cybercrime and some others who are gainfully employed and those in school equally engage in cybercrime. This calls for direction of research on the effect of cybercrime on youth socialization.

    1.3 Research Questions

    1. What is the relationship between economic recession and youth involvement in cyber crime ?
    2. What are the implication of recession in Owerri Municipal in Imo State?
    3. Could there be other causes of cyber crime in Owerri Municipal?
    4. What are the consequences of cyber-crime in Owerri Municipal in Imo State?

    1.4 Objectives of the Study

    The main aim of the study will investigate Economic Recession and Cyber Crime in Owerri Municipal in Imo State. The specific objectives includes;

    1. To determine the relationship between economic recession and youth involvement in cyber crime
    2. To identify the implication of recession in Owerri Municipal in Imo State?
    3. To identify the causes of cyber-crime in Owerri Municipal in Imo State.
    4. To examine the consequences of cyber-crime in Owerri Municipal in Imo State.

    1.5 Research Hypotheses

    1. There is a relationship between economic recession induced unemployment and involvement in cyber crime
    2. There is a relationship between economic hardship induced by economic recession and internet fraud.
    3. There is a relationship between implication of recession and involvement in cyber crime

    1.6 Significance of the Study                                          

    Theoretically this study is very important because the study has added to the existing literature by revealing a number of different bases on what typically makes and motivates cybercriminals and also identify the consequences it has in the society.

    Practically, this study will provide useful information on the factors responsible for the increase rate of cyber-crime in the society. The publicity surrounding Nigeria cyber-crime is raising fears that the country may face a slowdown in international investment in telecommunication as well as the financial sectors. As more Nigerians use the internet for their banking needs, the number of fraudsters eyeing people’s bank accounts and online financial transactions has also multiplied.

    Unlike the advance societies, developing societies have almost little or no modalities put in place to curb the excesses of cyber-criminals. In order to out smart the cyber-crime fighting agencies, these cyber-criminals have connections with one another thereby learning more sophisticated methods/skills day in day out to commit this havoc. As such, the exposure of the techniques been used by these cyber-criminals will contribute positively to the efforts being made by these agencies.

    Moreover, since youths within the age bracket of 18-30 years (Zero Tolerance, 2006), have been identified to be most vulnerable to this crime and have also been identified to be either in tertiary institutions or about to be admitted into one or graduates. The research work was able to identify other attributes/characteristics of cyber-criminals. In addition, since cyber-crime is denting the country image among the committee of nations and the present administration has vowed to place Nigeria among the top twenty largest economies in the world by 2020. This research will contribute positively to the efforts being made by concerned government and private agencies to develop strategies to combat the menace.

    1.7 Definition of Key terms/Operationalization of Concepts

    Economic Recession: Economic recession is a period of general economic decline and is typically accompanied by a drop in the stock market, an increase in unemployment, and a decline in the housing market. Generally, a recession is less severe than a depression.

    Crime: Crime is an act that violates the basic values and beliefs of society. Those values and beliefs are manifested as laws that the society agrees upon. It could also be referred to an act of committing an offence that is not in line with the laid down laws. Crime is a legal concept and has the sanction of the law (Williams in Dambazau et al 1996).

    Cyber: Cyber is a prefix referring to anything related to computer or networking. The word as often used with a growing number of times to describe new things that are being made possible by the spread of computer. Cyber can be combined to make words such as cyber-crime, cyber-space and cyber-café.

    Cybercrime: Refers to any criminal act dealing with computers and networks (called hacking). Additionally, cybercrime also includes traditional crimes conducted through the Internet.

    Internet Fraud: is a type of cybercrime fraud or deception which makes use of the Internet and could involve hiding of information or providing incorrect information for the purpose of tricking victims out of money, property, and inheritance.

    Scammers: a person who commits fraud or participates in a dishonest scheme.

    Youths: the period between childhood and adult age.


    Pages:  70

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF               

    Chapters: 1-5                                          

    Source: Imsuinfo

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • Impact Of Leadership Style On Organization Performance

    ABSTRACT

    The study is on “Impact of leadership style on organization performance”. The study has three objectives and three research questions. Descriptive Survey research design was used for the study. The population was 100 and the sample size was 5 companies in Port-Harcourt randomly. Taro Yamanne (1969) statistical formula was used to determine the sample. Questionnaire was used for collection of data while simple percentage and frequency counts table was used to analyze the research questions. The findings show that democratic leadership styles have a positive and significant effect on employee’s performance. Democratic leadership style has been proven to be a very effective tool towards boosting employees level of productivity. A significant relationship exists between democratic participatory leadership style and employees motivation. Analytical result shows that an organization that practices democratic leadership style will enhance workers motivation. The study therefore recommends that, Management and organizations should adopt democratic leadership style as a matter of corporate policy. Democratic leadership style should be adopted as a very effective tool for motivating workers and to boost their morale and output. This is because it gives the sense of belonging, acceptance, self-worth and approval etc, to the employees as identified by Maslow being some of the conceptual human needs. Management and organizations should take advantage of the peaceful and harmonious industrial environment usually created by this adoption of democratic leadership style so that creative and useful ideas from the workers can be played up and embrace for the advancement and progress of the whole entity.

    CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTON

    1.1 Background of the Study

    In recent times, the research has been tremendously rising on organizational failures. Most people and researchers have always attributed to the inability of manager to be able to manage or lead subordinates effectively in their organizations.

    This development has led to this research study which aims to ascertain the impact of democratic leadership style on the organizational performance.

    Democratic leadership has been seen as one of the most important elements on through which the objectives and goals of the organizations are achieved. Democratic leadership, also known as participative leadership is where individuals who would typically be considered unequal by hierarchal standards have shared power in making decisions. Democratic leadership has a noticed effort on the behavior attitude and performance of their subordinates and also emphasize collaboration and the free-flow of ideas. Democratic leadership is an important aspect of management. For an effective performance of the organization, there must be an art of inspiring the subordinates to perform their duties willingly and competently.

    Davies (1967) viewed leadership as persuasion ability over others to meet objectives enthusiastically. Leadership involves inducement, persuasion and motivation of subordinates to enable them contribute willingly to the organizational goals based on the employee’s maximum capabilities (Nwachukwu, 2000).

    Lipharm (1964) sees leadership as the initiative of a new structure or procedure for the accomplishment of an organizational goal.

    Whereas, Hith (1981) defined leadership as the process of provision of direction and influencing individuals or group in order to attain goals. In every organization, it must be stated clearly, the number of subordinate in the organization, the performance of organization will be affected. Additionally, leadership style, is the manifestation of the dominant pattern of behavior of a leader (Olaniyan, 1999; Okurumeh, 2001). Employees are the most important assets in establishment which, the objectives may not be achieved.

    Ali, Elmi and Mohammed (2013) maintains that although many factors may influence the performance of an organization, there can be little doubt that the quality of leadership available to it will be one of the most critical determinants of ultimate success. Leadership behavior plays a very important role in enhancing employee’s job satisfaction, work motivation and work performance.

    Thus, a leader is responsible and entrusted to perform such leadership functioning as planning, organization, directing, coordinating and controlling the work of the organization for effective performance.

    Attman (1979) viewed leadership as a process of influencing people to direct their efforts towards goals attainment. Stoner et al (1978) sees leadership as the process of directing and influencing the task-related activities of group members. Hence, there are three implications of this definition. First, leadership must involve other people, followers or subordinates. By their willingness to follow the leader status and make leadership process possible. Without followers or subordinates, a person’s leadership qualities, if they existed at all, would be irrelevant. Second, the leadership process involves an unequal distribution of power among leader and group members. Leader can direct some of the activities of group members, that is, the members are compelled or are willing to obey most of the leader directions. The group members cannot similarly direct the leader’s activities; through they will obviously affect those affected in number of ways. Third, the definition suggests that leaders can influence their followers or subordinates what to do, but also can influence how or in what manner the subordinates carry out the leader’s instruction.

    According to Stoner (1978) motivation is that which causes channel and sustains people behavior. Glueck (1978), it is regarded as a set of attitudes which dispose one to act in a goal directed way. The act of influencing and stimulating a person’s action. Atkinson (1964), Ajijiola (1976) and Ikechukwu (1979),Jones (1965), says it has to do with how behavior gets started, energized, sustained, directed, stopped and what kind of subjective reaction is present in the organism while all this is going on. Motivation will help leaders understand why subordinate behave the way they do and can also influence the organizational performance.

    1.2     Statement of the Problem

    Past studies have proven that democratic leadership contributed towards better performance and it leads to high levels of team outcomes and solicits different ideas form team members. Leadership style has become a very crucial area of management. In fact, it has attracted the attention of many management scientists who have actually delved into the difficult task of writing about the subject in the management literature.

    Improper leadership qualities within the organization have a negative impact on the subordinates as well as the achievement of the organization objectives. For a long time, due to many factors, including the “hegemonic” nature of communication in Nigeria, youths had little opportunity to be active in governance, or make their views heard. However, with improvement in communication technology, the status quo appears to be changed. An effective leader influences followers in a desired manner to achieve desired goals. So this research work is set to find its effects on the employee performance in the organization and possible improvement.

    1.3     Objectives of the Study

    The general objective of this study is to determine whether or not the democratic leadership style adopted by managers in Nigerian organizations have impact on the performance of employees.

    Specific Objectives;

    • To identify the impact of democratic leadership style on organizational performance,
    • To examine how participatory, democratic leadership style employees performance
    • To evaluate effective leadership as the determinant fact of achieving organizational goals

    1.4     Research Questions

    • Does the democratic leadership style adopted by the manager in the company have an impact on the organizational performance?
    • What is the influence of participatory democratic style on employees performance in Port-Harcourt?
    • Is there any effective and efficient leadership styles existing in companies in Port-Harcourt?

    1.5     Hypothesis of the Study

    This study is guided by the following conjectural propositions:

    H01: There is relationship between democratic leadership styles and organizational performance.

    H02: There is a relationship between participatory democratic leadership styles and workers efficiency.

    H03: There is no significant correlation on participative leadership style and the followers on performance improvement.

    1.6     Scope of the Study

    Some firms operating in Rivers State were selected for this important study with special preference to those in Port Harcourt. These firms include;

    1. Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas Company
    2. Mobil Producing Limited
    • TSK Nigeria Limited
    1. Chevron Limited
    2. Deutag Drilling Limited

    Respondents sort for are managers, supervisors and personnel managers since they perform the democratic leadership roles in organizations.

    1.7   Significance of the Study

    The human factor as noted in management is a simple most important resource. This study ensures to help as well as tackle the leadership problems challenging companies in Rivers State and attain remedies to these problems. Those in other parts of the country will benefit from this study. The private and public sector firms are also not excluded from these achievements and will find this study relevant since they experience nearly similar type of environment.

    The study will also assist effectively and efficiently potential business investors on the basic issues on how to utilize the human resources intheir organizations students and researchers will find interest on this area of study and this work relevant. Thus, democratic leadership subsumed under management effort is substantial and cannot be overemphasized.

    1.8   Background of the Case Study

    Democratic leadership covers a very conspicuous position of group or organization conduct. It is the heart of an organization, which without, organization or group cannot properly function. The studies on leadership so far, have confirmed that there is no single basic pattern of abilities and personality traits or characteristics of all leaders.

    To crown it all, the essence of this is to find out the impact of democratic leadership style on employee performance. However, this study will enlighten managers to be effective democratic leaders and not leader by position rather disposition and how to be employee oriented. Connect, find common ground and empower them to succeed so as to achieve organizational set of goals

     1.9 Definitions of Terms

    Democratic Style: As used in this study, it implies the way which influenced process is exercised. It is the characteristics ways in which the leader relate to his subordinates or employees.

    Employees: This refers to people who are under control of the leader manager who turns inputs of the organization to output based on directives.

    Employee Performance: This is the employee’s behavior directed towards the requirements of the jobs as well as productivity and profitability of the organization.

    Organization: This refers to a system of consciously coordinates activities of two or more persons explicitly created to achieve specific goals and objectives.


    Pages:  51

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF               

    Chapters: 1-5                                          

    Source: Imsuinfo                            

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • The Challenges Of Local Government Finances And Rural Development In Bayelsa State Between 1999 And 2016

    ABSTRACT

    The study examined the challenges of Local Government finance and rural development in Bayelsa State. Four research questions and four hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The survey research design was employed for the study. The population of the study comprised of 8,571 staffs of the 8 Local Government councils in the State. Simple proportion was used to extract a sample of 1052 from the general population. Purposive sampling technique was employed to collect data from the respondents. Data was collected using a self-structured questionnaire titled “challenges of Local Government finance and rural development questionnaire”. The collected data were analyzed using frequency counts, percentages, mean and standard deviation, and independent t-test (which were used for testing the hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance). It was observed from the findings that The various reforms on Local Government have impacted on the rules and principles of Local Government financing in Bayelsa State The specific external financial challenges local government in Bayelsa State face are:  undue state government interference on local government statutory allocation, poor local government reforms, insufficient allocation from the federal account and undue interference of state house of assembly on local government budget’. The most prominent external challenge to local government finance in Bayelsa State is undue state government interference on local government statutory allocations. Based on the findings, the study recommends that an all-inclusive and participating LG reform that will succinctly address the challenges of Local Government finance and rural development be made. Local Government should endeavor to invest in revenue yielding businesses to help to help them address some of their financial challenges in areas of IGR and other sources of finance Financial auditing using electronic/computer aided medium should be highly encouraged in LGs to stall inappropriate use or mismanagement of LG revenue embarked for rural development.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    • Background to the Study

    The origin of Local Government administration in Nigeria dates back to the pre-colonial period. There were the emirate systems of Sokoto and Borno caliphates; in Ibadan, Egba and Ekiti, the Obas and Chiefs were noted to wield exclusive authority over the governance of their respective domains (Eneanya, 2012).  Moreover, in these areas, there were smaller districts, villages and wards that were subjects of the kingdom and the emirate governments. These smaller or sub- ordinate levels of government could be seen or described as Local governments in pre- colonial era.

    The emergence of indirect rule which later degenerated into direct rule by the British colonialists subverted the exclusive powers of the pre- colonial Local government system as the traditional rulers under the direct rule system became mere Local agents of the Obas in the west; and, warrant chiefs in the East became sole native authorities in their domains (Ugwu, 2008). Modern local government system emerged  in Nigeria in 1960 and by 1965 just five years after independence, the number of Local Government areas in Nigeria which was 106 before 1965 rose to 299. This figure later rose to 301 in 1979 to 781 in 1981, when the creation of States became prevalent and the State Governments were given authority to create local government (Ugwu, 2000, p. 8). After the overthrow of the civilian government, the Local Government were again reduced to 301 and later increased to 449 in 1987 and 589 in 1991. The figure later increased to 774 in 1996 and has remained so since then (Otobo, 2002).

    Globally, the purpose of local government is to provide an organized system where councils exercise their power and responsibilities to work together for peace, order and good governance of their municipal districts. The creation of the Local Government system in Bayelsa State was mainly to enhance development at the local level through its nearness to the local environment. This is because the Federal and State Government are considered by the rural populace as too distant to the plights of the grassroots. As such, the only government or administration which rural dwellers easily recognize is that which interacts with them on a daily basis.

    However, the effectiveness of Local Government in Bayelsa State is through the development it generates, the social amenities it provides and the extent to which it catered satisfactorily for the happiness and general well-being of the grassroot populace for which it has been established to serve (Ndoh, 2002). Thus the establishment of Local Government System in Bayelsa state and the myriad of functions tied to the system have sometimes eluded appropriate definition of the meaning and functions of this third tier of government.

    According to the 1976 Guideline for the Reform of Local Government in Nigeria, Local Government is a form of government exercise through the representative councils established by law to exercise specific powers within well-defined areas. What this implies is that a Local Government system in Nigeria must be constituted by elected representatives, and not appointed ones as is often the case in Nigeria where sole administrators and care-taker councils have been constituted to carry out Local Government Administration in many States. Njoku (2009) noted that Local Government is a third tier of government which administrative functions are generally limited to small local areas into which a country is usually split. Sharma et al (2011) opines that Local Government is that government that operated at the lowest level of society when compared to the sovereign and State government. It works at the grassroot levels close to the people, touching their everyday life. To Agarwal (2009) Local Government, simply put, is the administration of local areas run by elected representatives. If the administration of local areas is to be run by the State or central government offices, the administration shall be local but it shall not be local self-government. To Ogunna (1985 cited in Akamere, 2013), Local Government is simply and precisely, government at that local level. But in another way, Local Government is a system of devolution of powers to the local authority to provide services of a local status.

    Going by the above definitions of Local Government, it is not farfetched to stipulate that Local Government as the term implies is that system of government with elected representatives conferred the legislative and administrative powers of the affairs of manning the local environment by identifying with the grassroots populace and meeting up the democratic insistence of rural transformation through active participation of the local people.

    The importance of the duties and functions of Local Government in Nigeria cuts across many sectors of the Nigerian society such as economic development, social services, political leadership and nation building etc. Indeed most of these functions cannot be efficiently and effectively executed without an adequate finance or strong revenue base. The revenue generation of Local Governments in Nigeria is principally derived from statutory allocation “a direct share of the Local Government from the federal account” and tax (a compulsory levy imposed by government on individuals and cooperate bodies for various legitimate functions of the State. Historically, Local Government in Nigeria has developed a system of taxation and other sources of revenue generation and this can be traced to the era, prior to British pre-colonial and colonial period. Under this scenario, community taxes were organized and levied on taxable adults. In recent times, the sources of local revenue generation have been expanded; hence, Local Government can now generate revenue through various external and internal sources (Nwachukwu, 2013).

    The 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended,  identified various sources of local government’s internal source of finances in Nigeria to include: Shops and Kiosks rates: tenement licence fees; marriage, birth and death registration fees; naming of streets restoration fees excluding any street in the State capital; right of occupancy fees on land in rural areas, excluding those collectable by the Federal Government; market taxes and levies excluding any market where State finances are involved; motor park levies; domestic animal licence fees; Bicycle, truck, canoe, wheel barrow and cart fees, other than a mechanically propelled truck; cattle tax payable by cattle farmers only, merriment and road closure levy, radio and television licence fees, vehicle radio licence fees,wrong parking charges; public convenience, sewage and refuse disposal fees; customary burial ground permit fee, religious places establishment permit fee; and signboard and advertisement permit fee. These constitute the internal sources of finance available to Local Government in Nigeria for the execution of their rural transformation functions.

    The idea of local government as an instrument of rural development in Bayelsa State and Nigeria at large has attracted serious attention both nationally and internationally since the local government reform of 1976. Agagu (1997) viewed local government as a level of government which is supposed to have its greatest impact on the people at the rural areas. In the views of Enero, Oladoyin and Elumilade (2004) local government is the third level of government in a federal system  which is nearest to the citizens and saddled with the responsibility of guaranteeing the political, social and economic development of the grassroot populace.

    As a result of the local governments’ capacity for rural development in Bayelsa State, there has been growing recognition of the importance of rural development as an instrument in the overall development of the contemporary state. Local governments exists in a federal system due to the infrastructural, resources distribution, human resources development and employment deficit  in the rural and most urban areas which has made rural development imperative (Ogbazi, 1982 in Zakari ya‟u, 2014). This imbalance has subjected the rural areas in Bayelsa State to more disadvantaged economic position.

    It has induced rural – urban migration, thereby, increasing unemployment situation in the urban areas mostly in such places as Southern Ijaw, Kolokuma/Opokuma, Brass among others, while, simultaneously depriving the rural areas of their agricultural workforce (Dickson, 2014). The rationale behind the existence of  the local government system in Nigeria is to bring the presence of the government closer to people in the grassroots for active participation in governance, service delivery and to enhance socio-economic development and good governance (Ogunna, 1996 in Okoli, et al, 2015; Ogbette, Idam &  Kareem, 2018). But unfortunately transparency and accountability in the local governments in Bayelsa State is a rhetoric, most local government officials display provocative wealth gotten through criminal institutionalized stealing and corrupt practices, coupled by the inability of state governments to effectively fund local government administration in the state due to the State local government joint account system that gives state government officials the capacity and capability to siphon the funds meant for the local government administration to their own personal use (Dickson, 2014). This have translated to development deficits in infrastructure provisions in education, health, electricity and even the supply of pipe borne water for the rural populace.

    Therefore, the realization of rural development by Local Governments in Bayelsa State becomes frustrated since it depends largely on the capacity to which each of these internal sources of finances as well as the external sources of revenue (which chiefly is the statutory allocation from the federation account) contributes to the overall finance available to the Local Government at any given period.  Ogunna (1996, p. 28) observed that the inability of the Local Government in Nigeria to meet up their rural transformation obligations usually stems out from the paucity of funds accruing to them from both the internal and external source of finances. This has adversely impacted on the smooth running of the Local Government Administration in almost every part of the country. In the midst of these teething problems are dishonesty and mismanagement of the Local Government revenue among most revenue officers and sometimes the machinery put in place for the collection of revenue is  inadequate, leading to paucity of funds for rural development. It thus follows that Local Government inability to effectively and efficiently dispense their rural development objectives in Nigeria and more specifically in Bayelsa State are off-set by challenges to Local Government finances. This study therefore examines Local Government finances and rural development in Bayelsa State.

    1.2   Statement of the Problem

    It is a known fact that “the extent to which Local Governments in Nigeria can accomplish their goals of rural development depends largely on their finance base (Olusola, 2014).  The problem in Bayelsa State, however, is that. The lack of political will to raise collorary finances to complement their statutory allocations from the Federation Account (FACC) as required by the fiscal federalism which Nigeria operates. In fact, fiscal federalism as pertaining to Local Government entails clearly demarcated functions in both revenue generation and expenditures. Kizito and Fedila (2015, p. 2) rightly stated that:

    In a federal system such as Nigeria there exist three tiers of government namely Federal, State and Local Government. The constitution provides for the functions of the different tiers of government… Consequently resources are allocated to the three tiers of government from the federation account to enable them carry out their functions effectively, in addition to the revenue generated by each tier of government.

    From the above, it is evident that the Local Governments in Bayelsa State are aptly empowered by legislature to generate finances for the effective and efficient administration to achieve the goals and objectives which serves as pointers to their establishment, including rural development.

    Sadly the continued decline in Local Government finances since the dawn of democracy in Bayelsa State and poor rural development index across the 8 Local Governments in the State does not portray the meaningful definition of fiscal federalism as it pertains to the Local Government system in the State (Dickson 2014).

    For instance, in a recent study in 2016,  it was observed the total Revenue of the 8 Local Governments  which was 23.9 billion in 2007 rose slightly to 48.1 billion in 2013 and dropped sharply to 37.0 billion in 2014  and has been on the decline since  then. In the same vein, rural development index which was 40.33% in 2007 dropped sharply to 21.30% in 2014 and has been on the decline across the 8 Local Governments in the State (Dickson, 2016).

    Recently, the Governor, Henry Seriaki Dickson administration, noticing the inability of local governments under the previous administrations to use the funds at their disposal to effectively develop their jurisdictions, with the help of the state assembly, restructured the local administrative system in the state, such that local government care taker chairmen  were appointed for a consecutive period of two years, after which, these are replaced by new individuals as a system of local administration been practiced in the state. Moreover, these local government care taker chairmen (who are unelected officials) are supported by appointed Rural Development Area (RDA) chairmen appointed by the governor for each clan or kingdom in the state.

    Yet, notwithstanding these meaningful administrative arrangements, the finance accruing to the local government in all sincerity had not been put into meaningful use. This is evident from the poor state of rural development and quality of life across the eight local governments in the state, as local administrative infrastructural development and quality of life of the rural populace remains extremely poor. This is so because, despite the annual budgetary provisions by both the federal and state governments for the eight local government councils in the state, the local governments have continued to report not only dwindling allocations, but also poor IGR to the dissatisfaction of the grassroots populace.

    It therefore, it follows that finance constitutes the major live wire through which Local Governments in the State effectuate their rural transformation objectives and goals, the sharp decline in Local Government finances and rural development across the 8 Local Governments in the State as reported by Dickson (2014) is an indication of the existence of serious challenges to Local Government finances and rural development in the State and which need to be examined, arrested and succinctly addressed. Therefore this work examines the relationship between Local Government financing with interest in the areas of infrastructure for development and quality of life in rural Bayelsa between 1999 and 2016.

    1.3   Objectives of the Study

    The general objective of the study is to examine the relationship between Local Government financing and grassroot Development. The specific objectives will include the following:

    1. To show the extent in reflection of various Local Government reforms on the capabilities of Local Government sources of finance and rural development in Bayelsa.
    2. To investigate the extent of challenges faced by Local Government in sourcing for revenue for executing rural development in Bayelsa State.
    3. To examine the extent to which the contemporary Local Government finance impact on capabilities of Local Government for (infrastructural) development defined as quality of life in rural areas of Bayelsa State.

    1.4   Research Questions.

    For the objectives of the study to be achieved, the following research questions were raised to guide the study:

    1. To what extent have the various Local Government reforms reflected on the capabilities of Local Government to generate finance for rural development in Bayelsa state?
    2. To what extent do Local Governments in Bayelsa State face specific external challenges in sourcing for external revenue for rural development?
    3. To what extent do Local Governments in Bayelsa State face specific internal challenges in sourcing for internal revenue for rural development?
    4. To what extent does the contemporary Local Government finance impact on the capabilities of the Local Government for infrastructural development and quality of life in rural areas of Bayelsa State?

    1.5   Research Hypotheses

    HO1: The various local government reforms have not enhanced the capabilities of local government to generate finance for rural development in Bayelsa State.

    HO2: The most prominent external challenge to local government source of revenue in Bayelsa state is undue state government interference on local government statutory allocations.

    HO3: The most prominent internal challenge to local government finance in Bayelsa state is lack of investment in revenue yielding business.

    HO4: The contemporary Local Government financing system has undermined the capacity of local government to deliver on development and quality of life as against sources of finance.

    1.6   Scope of the Study

    The study was delimited to examining Local Government finances especially internal revenue generation between 1999- 2016. The time frame was chosen because the state was created in 1999 out of the old Rivers State and has since then attain an autonomous self-governance towards improving the quality of life of residents within her jurisdiction with successive governments enacting one or more local government policies aimed at improving the lots of rural populace. The study was conducted across the 8 Local Government Councils in Bayelsa State and involved participants from each of the Local Government Councils. Secondly, data such as the FACC Revenue and the internally Generated Revenue accruing to the 8 Local Government Areas in the State was obtained from extent literature and from the office of the Auditor General for Local Government in the State  as well as the office of the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS).

    1.7   Significance of the Study

    It is expected that the result of this study will be beneficial to a host of governmental and non-governmental organization/establishment and individuals. Specifically, the beneficiaries of the findings of the study will include:

    The Bayelsa State Government both at the state and local levels, since the results will not only identify the constraints to revenue generation and rural transformation at the local level of governance, but also how best to arrest the challenges for effective and efficient governance at the grass root level.

    The Federal Government will also find the results of this study very significant in understanding the relative financial burden of Local Government Councils in Bayelsa State and their quest to develop and transform their rural environment in the face of daunting social, economic and cultural challenges of modern day governance and democracy.

    Government agencies and legislative (Federal and State Government) will also find this research useful in understanding the need for an implementation of legislative framework on Local Government financial autonomy with expressive legal clauses aimed at expanding the finance base of Local Government Councils in Nigeria for effective and efficient rural development.

    Personnel of Local Government in Nigeria who are unacquainted with the administrative purview of the Local Government system in Nigeria will find the result of the study useful in broadening their knowledge on the financial constraints of Local Government Administration in Nigeria.

    The general public, mostly the rural literate populace will also find the results of this study useful in understanding the major issues bordering rural development in their environment and in relation to the administrative activities of their Local Government Councils.

    Finally, the result of the study will also be very useful to other researchers who intend to conduct studies in similar areas by adding to the available bodies of literature on Local Government and Local Government Administration.

    1.8   Operational Definition of Terms

    Local Government finances: in this study, Local Government finances refer to the income raised by elected local government. It includes local taxation, national grant subventions, local government service user charges, loan capital funding, and private financial partnerships.

    Rural development:  is the process of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of people living in rural areas, often relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas


    Pages:  180

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF         

    Chapters: 1-5                                                               

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract, References & Appendix.

    Project

  • Local Government Finance And Rural Development In Bayelsa State

    ABSTRACT

    The study examined the challenges of Local Government (LG) finances and rural development in Bayelsa State. Four research questions and hypotheses were raised. Survey research design was employed. The study area comprised the 8 Local Government Areas in the state with a population of 8,571 staff, from which 1152 respondents were sampled using simple proportion. Data was collected using a self-structured questionnaire. Frequency counts, percentages, mean and standard deviation and independent t-test were used to analyze the data. The findings of the study show that: the various reforms has increasing tendency for financial interference by the State as against the favored financial autonomy in the LG. The specific external and internal challenges of local government are:  undue state government interference on LG statutory allocation, poor local government reforms, and insufficient allocation from the Federation Account among others. The contemporary LG finance impacts positively in the improvement of primary health care infrastructure, housing, education in the rural areas, among others. The most prominent external challenge to local government finance in Bayelsa State is undue state government interference on local government statutory allocations.  The contemporary LG financing system has undermined the capacity of local government to deliver on development and quality of life as against sources of finance. It was therefore recommended among other things that, an all-inclusive and participating LG reform that will succinctly address the challenges of LG finance and rural development be made. Also, LG should endeavor to invest in revenue yielding businesses to help them address some of their financial challenges in areas of IGR and other sources of finance.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    • Background to the Study

    The origin of Local Government administration in Nigeria dates back to the pre-colonial period. There were the emirate systems of Sokoto and Borno caliphates; in Ibadan, Egba and Ekiti, the Obas and Chiefs were noted to wield exclusive authority over the governance of their respective domains (Eneanya, 2012).  Moreover, in these areas, there were smaller districts, villages and wards that were subjects of the kingdom and the emirate governments. These smaller or sub- ordinate levels of government could be seen or described as Local governments in pre- colonial era.

    The emergence of indirect rule which later degenerated into direct rule by the British colonialists subverted the exclusive powers of the pre- colonial Local government system as the traditional rulers under the direct rule system became mere Local agents of the Obas in the west; and, warrant chiefs in the East became sole native authorities in their domains (Ugwu, 2008). Modern local government system emerged  in Nigeria in 1952 and by 1965 just five years after independence, the number of Local Government areas in Nigeria rose to 299. This figure later rose to 301 in 1979 to 781 in 1981, when the creation of States became prevalent and the State Governments were given authority to create local government (Ugwu, 2000, p. 8). After the overthrow of the civilian government, the Local Government were again reduced to 301 and later increased to 449 in 1987 and 589 in 1991. The figure later increased to 774 in 1996 and has remained so since then (Otobo, 2002).

    The creation of the Local Government system in Bayelsa State was mainly to enhance development at the local level through its nearness to the local environment. This is because the Federal and State Government are considered by the rural populace as too distant to the plights of the grassroots. As such, the only government or administration which rural dwellers easily recognize is that which interacts with them on a daily basis.

    However, the effectiveness of Local Government in Bayelsa State is through the development it generates, the social amenities it provides and the extent to which it catered satisfactorily for the happiness and general well-being of the grassroot populace for which it has been established to serve(Ndoh, 2002). Thus the establishment of Local Government System in Bayelsa state and the myriad of functions tied to the system have sometimes eluded appropriate definition of the meaning and functions of this third tier of government.

    According to the 1976 Guideline for the Reform of Local Government in Nigeria, Local Government is a form of government exercise through the representative councils established by law to exercise specific powers within well-defined areas. What this implies is that a Local Government system in Nigeria must be constituted by elected representatives, and not appointed ones as is often the case in Nigeria where sole administrators and care-taker councils have been constituted to carry out Local Government Administration in many States. Njoku (2009) noted that Local Government is a third tier of government which administrative functions are generally limited to small local areas into which a country is usually split. Sharma et al (2011) opines that Local Government is that government that operated at the lowest level of society when compared to the sovereign and State government. It works at the grassroot levels close to the people, touching their everyday life. To Agarwal (2009) Local Government, simply put, is the administration of local areas run by elected representatives. If the administration of local areas is to be run by the State or central government offices, the administration shall be local but it shall not be local self-government. To Ogunna (1985 cited in Akamere, 2013), Local Government is simply and precisely, government at that local level. But in another way, Local Government is a system of devolution of powers to the local authority to provide services of a local status.

    Going by the above definitions of Local Government, it is not farfetched to stipulate that Local Government as the term implies is that system of government with elected representatives conferred the legislative and administrative powers of the affairs of manning the local environment by identifying with the grassroots populace and meeting up the democratic insistence of rural transformation through active participation of the local people.

    The importance of the duties and functions of Local Government in Nigeria cuts across many sectors of the Nigerian society such as economic development, social services, political leadership and nation building etc. Indeed most of these functions cannot be efficiently and effectively executed without an adequate finance or strong revenue base. The revenue generation of Local Governments in Nigeria is principally derived from statutory allocation “a direct share of the Local Government from the federal account” and tax (a compulsory levy imposed by government on individuals and cooperate bodies for various legitimate functions of the State. Historically, Local Government in Nigeria has developed a system of taxation and other sources of revenue generation and this can be traced to the era, prior to British pre-colonial and colonial period. Under this scenario, community taxes were organized and levied on taxable adults. In recent times, the sources of local revenue generation have been expanded; hence, Local Government can now generate revenue through various external and internal sources (Nwachukwu, 2013).

    The 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended,  identified various sources of local government’s internal source of finances in Nigeria to include: Shops and Kiosks rates: tenement licence fees; marriage, birth and death registration fees; naming of streets restoration fees excluding any street in the State capital; right of occupancy fees on land in rural areas, excluding those collectable by the Federal Government; market taxes and levies excluding any market where State finances are involved; motor park levies; domestic animal licence fees; Bicycle, truck, canoe, wheel barrow and cart fees, other than a mechanically propelled truck; cattle tax payable by cattle farmers only, merriment and road closure levy, radio and television licence fees, vehicle radio licence fees, wrong parking charges; public convenience, sewage and refuse disposal fees; customary burial ground permit fee, religious places establishment permit fee; and signboard and advertisement permit fee. These constitute the internal sources of finance available to Local Government in Nigeria for the execution of their rural transformation functions.

    The idea of local government as an instrument of rural development in Bayelsa State and Nigeria at large has attracted serious attention both nationally and internationally since the local government reform of 1976. Agagu (1997) viewed local government as a level of government which is supposed to have its greatest impact on the people at the rural areas. in the views of Enero, Oladoyin and Elumilade (2004) local government is the third level of government in a federal system  which is nearest to the citizens and saddled with the responsibility of guaranteeing the political, social and economic development of the grassroot populace.

    As a result of the local governments’ capacity for rural development in Bayelsa State, there has been growing recognition of the importance of rural development as an instrument in the overall development of the contemporary state. local governments exists in a federal system due to the infrastructural, resources distribution, human resources development and employment deficit gap between the rural and urban areas which has made rural development imperative (Ogbazi, 1982 in Zakari ya‟u, 2014). This imbalance has subjected the rural areas in Bayelsa State to more disadvantaged economic position.

    It has induced rural – urban migration, thereby, increasing unemployment situation in the urban areas mostly in such places as Southern Ijaw, Kolokuma/Opokuma, Brass among others, while, simultaneously depriving the rural areas of their agricultural workforce (Dickson, 2014). The rationale behind the existence of  the local government system in Nigeria is to bring the presence of the government closer to people in the grassroots for active participation in governance, service delivery and to enhance socio-economic development and good governance (Ogunna, 1996 in Okoli, et al, 2015;Ogbette, Idam &  Kareem, 2018). But unfortunately transparency and accountability in the local governments in Bayelsa State is a rhetoric, most local government officials display provocative wealth gotten through criminal institutionalized stealing and corrupt practices, coupled by the inability of state governments to effectively fund local government administration in the state due to the State local government joint account system that gives state government officials the capacity and capability to siphon the funds meant for the local government administration to their own personal use (Dickson, 2014).

    Therefore, the realization of rural development by Local Governments in Bayelsa State becomes frustrated since it depends largely on the capacity to which each of these internal sources of finances as well as the external sources of revenue (which chiefly is the statutory allocation from the federation account) contributes to the overall finance available to the Local Government at any given period.  Ogunna (1996, p. 28) observed that the inability of the Local Government in Nigeria to meet up their rural transformation obligations usually stems out from the paucity of funds accruing to them from both the internal and external source of finances. This has adversely impacted on the smooth running of the Local Government Administration in almost every part of the country. In the midst of these teething problems are dishonesty and mismanagement of the Local Government revenue among most revenue officers and sometimes the machinery put in place for the collection of revenue is  inadequate, leading to paucity of funds for rural development. It thus follows that Local Government inability to effectively and efficiently dispense their rural development objectives inNigeria and more specifically in Bayelsa Stateare off-set by challenges to Local Government finances. This study therefore examines Local Government finances and rural development in Bayelsa State.

    1.2   Statement of the Problem

    It is a known fact that “the extent to which Local Governments in Nigeria can accomplish their goals of rural development depends largely on their finance base (Olusola, 2014).  The problem in Bayelsa State, however, is that. The lack of political will to raise collorary finances to complement their statutory allocations from the Federation Account (FACC) as required by the fiscal federalism which Nigeria operates. In fact, fiscal federalism as pertaining to Local Government entails clearly demarcated functions in both revenue generation and expenditures. Kizito and Fedila (2015, p. 2) rightly stated that:

    In a federal system such as Nigeria there exist three tiers of government namely Federal, State and Local Government. The constitution provides for the functions of the different tiers of government… Consequently resources are allocated to the three tiers of government from the federation account to enable them carry out their functions effectively, in addition to the revenue generated by each tier of government.

     

    From the above, it is evident that the Local Governments in Bayelsa State are aptly empowered by legislature to generate finances for the effective and efficient administration to achieve the goals and objectives which serves as pointers to their establishment, including rural development.

    Sadly the continued decline in Local Government finances since the dawn of democracy in Bayelsa State and poor rural development index across the 8 Local Governments in the State does not portray the meaningful definition of fiscal federalism as it pertains to the Local Government system in the State (Dickson 2014).

    For instance, in a recent study in 2016,  it was observed the total Revenue of the 8 Local Governments  which was 23.9 billion in 2007 rose slightly to 48.1 billion in 2013 and dropped sharply to 37.0 billion in 2014  and has been on the decline since  then. In the same vein, rural development index which was 40.33% in 2007 dropped sharply to 21.30% in 2014 and has been on the decline across the 8 Local Governments in the State (Dickson, 2014).

    More recently, the Governor Henry Seriaki Dickson administration, noticing the inability of local governments under the previous administrations to use the funds at their disposal to effectively develop their jurisdictions, with the help of the state assembly, restructured the local administrative system in the state, such that the appointment of local government care taker chairmen for a consecutive period of two years, after which, these are replaced by new individuals became the system in practice in the state. Moreover, these local government care taker chairmen (who are unelected officials) are supported by appointed Rural Development Area (RDA) chairmen appointed by the governor for each clan or kingdom in the state.

    Yetinspite of these meaningful administrative arrangements, the finance accruing to the local government as could be seen from the poor state of rural development and quality of life across the eight local governments in the state, remains extremely poor. This is so because, despite the annual budgetary provisions by both the federal and state governments for the eight local government councils in the state, the local governments have continued to report not only dwindling allocations, but also poor IGR to the dissatisfaction of the grassroots populace.

    It therefore, it follows that finance constitutes the major live wire through which Local Governments in the State effectuate their rural transformation objectives and goals, the sharp decline in Local Government finances and rural development across the 8 Local Governments in the State is an indication of the existence of serious challenges to Local Government finances and rural development in the State and which need to be examined, arrested and succinctly addressed. Therefore this work examines the relationship between Local Government financing with interest in the areas of infrastructure for development and quality of life in rural Bayelsa between 1999 and 2016.

    1.3   Objectives of the Study

    The general objective of the study is to examine the relationship between Local Government financing and grassroot Development. The specific objectives will include the following:

    1. To show the extent in reflection of various Local Government reforms on the capabilities of Local Government sources of finance and rural development in Bayelsa.
    2. To investigate the extent of external challenges faced by Local Government in sourcing for external revenue for executing rural development in Bayelsa State.
    3. To investigate the extent of internal challenges faced by Local Government in sourcing for internally generated revenue for executing rural development in Bayelsa State.
    4. To examine the extent to which the contemporary Local Government finance impact on capabilities of Local Government for (infrastructural) development defined as quality of life in rural areas of Bayelsa State.

    1.4   Research Questions.

    For the objectives of the study to be achieved, the following research questions were raised to guide the study:

    1. To what extent have the various Local Government reforms reflected on the capabilities of Local Government to generate finance for rural development in Bayelsa state?
    2. To what extent do Local Governments in Bayelsa State face specific external challenges in sourcing for external revenue for rural development?
    3. To what extent do Local Governments in Bayelsa State face specific internal challenges in sourcing for internally generated revenue for rural development?
    4. To what extent does the contemporary Local Government finance impact on the capabilities of the Local Government for infrastructural development and quality of life in rural areas of Bayelsa State?

    1.5   Research Hypotheses

    HO1: The various local government reforms have not enhanced the capabilities of local government to generate finance for rural development in Bayelsa State.

    HA1:The various local government reforms have enhanced the capabilities of local government to generate finance for rural development in Bayelsa State.

    HO2:The most prominent external challenge to local government finance in Bayelsa state is undue state government interference on local government statutory allocations.

    HA2:  Undue state government interference on local government statutory allocations is not the most prominent external challenge to local government finance in Bayelsa State.

    HO3:The most prominent internal challenge to local government finance in Bayelsa State is lack of investment in revenue yielding business by the local government.

    HA3:lack of investment in revenue yielding business by the local government is not themost prominent internal challenge to local government finance in Bayelsa State.

    HO4: The contemporary Local Government financing system has undermined the capacity of local government to deliver on development and quality of life as against sources of finance.

    HA4:The contemporary Local Government financing system has not undermined the capacity of local government to deliver on development and quality of life as against sources of finance

    1.6   Scope of the Study

    The study will be delimited to examining Local Government finances especially internal revenue generation, which will help to finance infrastructure and rural development in Bayelsa State between 1999- 2016. It will be conducted across the 8 Local Government Councils in Bayelsa State and will involve participants from each of the Local Government Councils. Secondly, data such as the FACC Revenue and the internally Generated Revenue accruing to the 8 Local Government Areas in the State will be obtained from extent literature and from the office of the Auditor General for Local Government in the State  as well as the office of the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS).

    1.7   Significance of the Study

    It is expected that the result of this study will be beneficial to a host of governmental and non-governmental organization/establishment and individuals. Specifically, the beneficiaries of the findings of the study will include:

    The Bayelsa State Government both at the state and local levels, since the results will not only identify the constraints to revenue generation and rural transformation at the local level of governance, but also how best to arrest the challenges for effective and efficient governance at the grass root level.

    The Federal Government will also find the results of this study very significant in understanding the relative financial burden of Local Government Councils in Bayelsa State and their quest to develop and transform their rural environment in the face of daunting social, economic and cultural challenges of modern day governance and democracy.

    Government agencies and legislative (Federal and State Government) will also find this research useful in understanding the need for an implementation of legislative framework on Local Government financial autonomy with expressive legal clauses aimed at expanding the finance base of Local Government Councils in Nigeria for effective and efficient rural development.

    Personnel of Local Government in Nigeria who are unacquainted with the administrative purview of the Local Government system in Nigeria will find the result of the study useful in broadening their knowledge on the financial constraints of Local Government Administration in Nigeria.

    The general public, mostly the rural literate populace will also find the results of this study useful in understanding the major issues bordering rural development in their environment and in relation to the administrative activities of their Local Government Councils.

    Finally, the result of the study will also be very useful to other researchers who intend to conduct studies in similar areas by adding to the available bodies of literature on Local Government and Local Government Administration.

    1.8   Operational Definition of Terms

    Local Government finances: in this study, Local Government finances refer to the income raised by elected local government. It includes local taxation, national grant subventions, local government service user charges, loan capital funding, and private financial partnerships.

    Rural development:  is the process of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of people living in rural areas, often relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas


    Pages:  240

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF                

    Chapters: 1-5                                                      

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • Propaganda in politics: the use of language for effective electioneering campaign

    ABSTRACT

    The study is on “Propaganda in politics: the use of language for effective electioneering campaign”. The study has three objectives and three research questions. Qualitative research method was used for the study, which entails documentary method as well. This work sourced for data from both primary and secondary sources. Also information relating to the topic under study was also sourced for from the internet. As regards primary source, the researcher got some texts on language and politics and believed they shall be of great help in making this work a success. Secondary source involved information concerning political speeches of 2015 general election in Nigeria. The findings of this work established that a high level of propaganda pervaded most of the political writings released in the build up to the 2015 general elections in Nigeria. Also, those statements by party loyalists to an extent made impacts on the audience especially the opposition. The opposition on their part did not leave any stone unturned at replying all propagandistic speeches directed at them and this summarily led to the flooding of propaganda in most of the campaign speeches. Sequel to the findings from the analysis done in this work, the researcher will like to proffer some recommendations as part of the projects contribution to the society at large. The following are some of the recommendations: It is glaring that the use of propaganda pervaded the campaigns of the rival parties, damaging of other people’s character, hate speeches, exaggerations, and half-truths among others. This recent trend summarily reduced campaigns from being issue based to trying to outdo the opposition by all means possible. Therefore, the researcher recommends that more emphasis should be laid on issue based campaigns and not making oneself the better by destroying the other.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    1.1: BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

    Man by nature is a political animal. This suggests that man is both gregarious and solitary. Politics focuses on who “gets what, when and how”. It determines the process through which power and influence are used in the promotion of certain values and interests (Laswell, 1977).

    To be involved in politics therefore is demanding as certain things must be put into consideration. This is the use of language in politics as a persuading tool which do have significant effect on any electioneering campaign.

    Propaganda is as old as mankind. People have tried to influence others to achieve certain goals or objectives throughout the ages.

    Originally, propaganda means spreading of good news. When Goebbels, Hitler and other fascists began to use the word to describe their promotional activities, propaganda is associated with the insidious and subversive means of moving a person to predetermined ends (Danziger, 1998).

    Propaganda in the most neutral sense means to disseminate or promote particular ideas. In Latin, it means “to propagate” or “to sow”

    In the 20th century, the term propaganda was often associated with manipulative approach, but historically, propaganda has been a neutral descriptive term.

    Propaganda is one unique device of politics. This is mostly observed in any electioneering campaign. Longe and Ofuanu (1996:17) argue that propaganda is solely introduced to damage character.

    A wide range of materials and media are used for conveying propaganda messages, which changed as new technologies were invented, including paintings, cartoons, posters, pamphlets, films, radio shows, TV shows and websites.

    More recently, the digital age has given rise to new ways of disseminating propaganda, for example, bots and algorithms are currently being used to create computational propaganda and fake or biased news and spread it on social media. Using the manifold possibilities offered by the various technologies it is easy to establish a direct channel of communication to every place in the world in not more than a second.

    “Propaganda means information, doctrines opinionetc, that are often derogatory, as in political propaganda Films and plays.

    These are said to be derogatory because they tend to damage or take away credit from something or someone. The sole purpose of propaganda is to misinform and mislead and to consciously indoctrinate.”

    Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence an audience and further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, using loaded language to produce an emotional rather than a rational response to the information that is being presented. Propaganda is often associated with material which is prepared by governments, but activist groups, companies, religious organizations, the media and individuals also produce propaganda.

    The use of propaganda   many times, present the propagandist (that is the person speaking) as a saint and the person the propaganda is aimed at as the devil that is not fit to lead. The focus of this research however is to show how language plays a significant role in political propaganda as it relates to electioneering campaign.

    This work shall focus on the 2015 presidential electioneering campaign in Nigeria. Linguistics device propagandist use to achieve their aim in the afore-mentioned electioneering campaign shall be brought to the fore.

     

    1.2. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

    It has been observed that previous researches addressed the role language plays in persuading and educating the electorate during electioneering campaign. This is also known as rhetoric. The researcher observed that much has not been done on the effects of language on the contestants and the electorates with regard to campaign of calumny (propaganda) is yet to be fully studied, with this in mind, this study shall show that language has a great effect on both the electorates and candidates as observed during 2015 general election in Nigeria.

    1.3. OBJECTIVES / AIM OF THE STUDY

    Where ever politics evolves, propaganda is a major tool in deciding the vote. Propaganda itself is not possible without language. Based on this, the study is;

    1. To find out the effect of language on both the electorates and candidates during electioneering campaigns.
    2. To identify major types of propaganda techniques used in Nigeriaelectioneering campaign especially as it relates with2015 presidential election.
    3. To identify the relationship between language and propaganda.

     

    • RESEARCH QUESTIONS.

    This research on Propaganda in politics: Use of language for effective electioneering campaign has raised some questions amongst experts and professionals which this study will address. In other to achieve the aim of this study, the researcher should have asked the following questions:

    1. How does the use of linguistic devices affect both candidates and electorates during electioneering campaigns?
    2. What are the major propaganda techniques employed by party members against their opposition party in 2015’s presidential election?
    • What is the relationship between language and propaganda?

     

    1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

    This project work Propaganda in politics: the use of language for effective electioneering campaign is designed to determine the extent to which the use of language can be effective in electioneering campaigns.

    This study will also be of immense benefits to politicians, especially the public office holders who normally use abusive words during electioneering campaigns as well as make false promises to the citizens.

    It may also be a relevant document for further research on propaganda in politics in Nigeria.

     

    1.6 SCOPE OF STUDY

    This work will dwell in language use and speech act. The study will focus on the language use from the communication point of view and the effect it intend to have on the hearer, employing these features: word coinage, vagueness, repetition, abusive expression, attack on party name and slogan etc. being a persuasive styles adopted by the politicians in political campaign as available in data collected.

     1.7    LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

    The researcher encountered some limitations during the cause of this work which will be listed below;

    1. The greatest limitation in this study is finance. Finance needed in carrying out a standard research is not always easy for any student including researcher. One actually needs a lot of funds to source for credible information and data as regarding the use of propaganda.
    2. Time was also a big constrain, as the researcher was made to work under a given period of time due to the pandemic (Covid19) and annual strike action by University lecturers which also affected the work.
    3. Lack of materials and poor power supply are also issues faced by the researcher.

     1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

    Since the work involves other discipline other than linguistics, terminologies that will be mentioned often in this work will be defined, such as:

    1.8.i  Language

    Language is any system structure of sign and meaning for the communication of experience MKC Uwajeh (2002).

    Noam Chomsky (2000) says language is the inherent capability of the native speakers to understand and form grammatical sentences. A language is a set of (finite or infinite) sentences each finite length and constructed out of finite set of elements.

     1.8.ii Politics

    Politics has no universal definition but has been defined by different scholars from their respective points of view.

    According to Harold Laswell, politics is the struggle for power to determine who gets what, when and how(1936).

    Aristotlethe father of political science called politics the master science.

    According to F.A.C Aramere (2003:3), “politics is the struggle for political power and the use of that power to the acquisition   of other values. Power is therefore the central focus of politics.

    1.8.iii Election

    This is act of choosing a representative or the holder of a particular office usually by ballot. Electorate refers to the whole body of persons, who have the right to vote in a country or area. Electioneering is the corresponding adjective of the noun election. It refers to the activities of making speeches and visiting people to try to persuade them to vote for a particular politician or a political party.

    1.8.iv Propaganda

    According to Oyeneye (1997:41) professor Calvin Coolidge (1964) saying that propaganda seeks to present part of the facts, to distort their relations , and to force conclusion which could not be drawn from a complete and candid survey of all the facts”.

    Propaganda is the management of collective attitude by the manipulation of significant symbols. (Lasswell, 1927 p.627)

    Propaganda is the consistent, enduring effort to create or shape events to influence the relations of the public to an enterprise, idea or group. (Bernays, 1928, p. 52 in 2005 edition)

    An expression of opinion or action by individuals or groups deliberately designed to influence opinions or actions of other individuals or groups with reference to predetermined ends. (Miller, 1939).

    Propaganda is a process which deliberately attempts through persuasion-techniques to secure from the propagandee, before he can deliberate freely, the responses desired by the propagandist (Henderson, 1943, p. 83).

    Propaganda is the attempt to affect the personalities and to control the behavior of individuals towards ends considered unscientific or of doubtful value in a society at a particular time. (Doob, 1948, p. 240).

    Biased communication is a sophisticated term for propaganda, a word feared or avoided by all objective people and therefore a source of darkness and obscurity since nobody wants to talk about it but nevertheless everybody uses it. (Dovring&Lasswell, 1959, p. 5).

    Any conscious and open attempt to influence the beliefs of an individual or group guided by a predetermined end and characterized by the systematic use of irrational and often unethical techniques of persuasion (Smith, 1989, p. 80).

    Propaganda is a communication to convey a message, an idea, or an ideology that is designed primarily to serve the self-interests of the person doing the communicating (Taylor, 1990, p. 7).

    Mass suggestion or influence through the manipulation of symbols and the psychology of individual. (Pratkanis and Aronson, 1992, p.11).

    Propaganda represents the work of large organizations or groups to win over the public for special interests through a massive orchestration of attractive conclusions packaged to conceal both their persuasive purpose and lack of sound supporting reasons (Sproule, 1994, p. 8).

    Communications where the form and content is selected with the single-minded purpose of bringing some target audience to adopt attitudes and beliefs chosen in advance by the sponsors of communications. (Carey, 1997, p. 20)


    Pages:  71

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF         

    Chapters: 1-5                                 

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • Motivation And Productivity Of Junior Staff Of Ngor-Okpala Local Government Council (2015 – 2020)

    ABSTRACT

    This study focuses on the motivation and performance of junior staff of Ngor-Okpala local government. The study was carried out to determine if the motivation of junior staff of the local government by way of increased and prompt payment of salaries can lead to higher performance and output in the local government. The objectives of the study included: to explain how poor/inadequate salary contributes to low productivity/performance in Ngor-Okpala local government council, to determine if non participation of junior workers in decision making affect the relationship between the workers and the management in Ngor-Okpala local government council and to ascertain if the absence of good working environment reduces the workers productivity/performance in Ngor-Okpala local government council. The Hierarchy of Needs theory was used to analyze the work while the method of data collection consisted of a combination of both primary and secondary data. The research findings revealed that adequate salary, workers participation in decision making, and good working environments contribute immensely to organizational productivity and performance. Ngor-Okpala needs to increase the workers’ enjoyment of these variables to be able to actualize maximum productivity and performance of its junior staff.  

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

    The motivation of workers is just one variable affecting work performance, a number of organizational factors have to be considered as well. These include work flows, supply of material, the quality of work designed, work programming, the availability of appropriate equipment and above all, the quality of management. Motivation is a basic psychological process. Motivation is, therefore, an important variable for organization effectiveness and productivity.

    The comprehensive understanding of motivation lies in the need-drive-incentive sequence, or cycle. The basic process involves need, which sets drives in motion to accomplish incentives (anything which alleviates a need and reduce a drive). The drive or motive may be classified into primary, general and secondary categories. The primary motives are unlearned and psychologically based, common primary motives are hunger, thirsty, sleep, avoidance of pain, sex and material concern. The general or stimulus motive are also unlearned but are not psychologically based and they are curiosity, manipulation, activity, are all examples of general motives. Secondary motives are learned and are most relevant to the study of organization behavior. The needs for power, achievement, affiliation, security and status are major motivating forces in the behavior of organizational participants.

    Productivity is the goal of every organization, any organization that cannot operate to a degree of significant productivity in an important entity, such organization would produce a wholesome disappointment to its owners, and a wide spread dissatisfaction and disaffection among its entire worker. A productive organization enriches the owners, it serves as a source of inspiration and motivation to the workers as they would be very proud of their organization and appreciate the fruits of their labor.

    Motivation is the act of stimulating an organism to take a desire coursed of action. The theory of motivation is build on the “law of effect” of the psychology of learning which states, according to Beach (1975: 456), that “behavior that is perceived to be rewarding will tend to be repeated whereas the behavior that goes unrewarded or punished that will tend to be extinguished. In these perspectives, Kelly (1974:247) defines motivation as “behavior instigated by need and directed towards the goals that can satisfy this needs” thus, motivation is an instrument for securing good job performance. Motivation, therefore, is anything that stimulates people to act in a better way in other to achieve any stated objectives. According to Jones and George (2003:405) motivation may be defined as “psychological forces that determine the direction of a person’s behavior in an organization, a person’s level of effect, and a person’s level of persistence in the face of obstacle”. According to Hicks (1972:280) motivation can either be positive or negative. Positives motivation, in his view, is sometimes called “anxiety reducing motives” or “they cannot approach which offers something valuable to the workers” (pay, praises etc.). For acceptable performance on the other hand, negative motivation which is often called “the stick approach” uses of threatens or punishment of performance is unacceptable. Positive motivation serves as a powerful instrument or tool for raising the moral of workers to attain greater heights in their organizational goals.

    Productivity can be seen as the capacity or a situation where an individual or organization produces maximum results with available human financial and material resources to achieve set objective or goals. In this, efficiency and effectiveness are indices of public organization. For a proper and effective motivation of public servants, public managers should be fully aware of the theories and techniques of motivation and skillfully apply them in the motivation of workers in other to inspire them toward achieving organizational goals. Any organization that cannot operate a degree of significant productivity is an impotent entity or organization.

    1.2    STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEM

    The issue of motivation has posed different challenges to workers performance and productivity. This is because many organizations have not been able to employ the most suitable techniques that motivate workers to put in their best in achieving organizational goals and objectives. Most organizations are faced with the issue of lack of adequate salaries, lack of workers participation in decision making, lack of good working environment, irregular promotion of workers etc.

    Lack of adequate salary kills the spirit of productivity. This is because a worker is more likely to perform to his potential if he’s happy with the salary he is earning. A person earning a high salary feels motivated to do a good job, because he wants to please his employer to retain his position. His salary brings him a feeling of security, allows him to feel accomplished and gives him a high status ranking that he enjoys. A person is much more willing to put in extra hours at the office if he feels his financial rewards are a fair trade-off.

    Lack of workers participation in decision making is another challenging issue which affects workers productivity and performance in an organization. Most organizations have failed in the area of workers participation in the decision making. Workers tend to put in their best when they are inclusive in decision making. Research has shown that participation in decision-making can increase workers performance, raises productivity, production and efficiency of the employee of any organization. In addition, participation in the decision-making process gives each employee the opportunity to voice their opinions, and to share their knowledge with others. While this improves the relationship between manager and employee, it also encourages a strong sense of teamwork among workers.

    Another challenging issue that affects organizational productivity is lack of good working environment. Studies have shown that noise, light, temperature, furniture, location and layout are important factors that influence employee productivity. Lighting is the primary factor that affects an employee’s productivity, temperature has a greater effect on female employees than on male employees, male employees are highly affected by office furniture, both natural and artificial light are necessary to maximize employee productivity, spatial arrangement of office furniture is important to productivity. Poor working environment creates dissatisfaction and working inconveniences among workers which invariably affects productivity and performance.

    Irregular promotion is another challenging issue that affects workers productivity. When promotion is not regular, the workers are not motivated to put in their best. Irregular promotion kills the motivating spirit of workers which invariably, affects the workers productivity and performance.

    Therefore, the problem focus of this work is to make a general assessment of the issue of Motivation in Ngor-Okpala local government and how it posed as a challenge to the its productivity. It is intended to explain and provide an insight on the strategies to be taken in order to ensure suitable and adequate productivity in the local government, with some practical solutions and recommendations.

    1.3      OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

    This research study aims at finding out the following:

    • To explain how poor/inadequate salary contributes to low productivity in Ngor-Okpala local government council.
    • To determine if non participation of junior workers in decision making affect the relationship between the workers and the management in Ngor-Okpala local government council.
    • To ascertain if the absence of good working environment reduce the workers productivity in Ngor-Okpala local government council.

    1.4      RESEARCH QUESTIONS

    1. In what ways do poor/inadequate salaries contribute to low productivity in Ngor-Okpala local government council?
    2. How does non-participation of junior workers in decision making affect the relationship between the workers and the management in Ngor-Okpala local government council?
    3. In what ways do poor work environment affect the workers productivity in Ngor-Okpala local government council?

    1.5     SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY

    Misplacement of emphasis is always an impediment towards the successful achievement of any particular good. So this study will help in ratifying the managerial misplacement of emphasis on monetary incentives and other non monetary incentives such as participation in decision making among the workers, good working environment and regular promotion as the sole motivator of workers towards achieving increased productivity.

    The study will educate or enlighten those on the management strata that when they begin to feel with their workers, have a humanistic focus on their best towards achieving increased productivity for their organization. The study is equally a criticism of the tenets of the scientific management school of thought which believed that given adequate monetary incentives, participation in decision making among the workers, good working environment and regular promotion to workers will help towards increased production.

    This study has primary significance to the management world especially practitioners and aspiring ones.

    1.6    RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

    This is an idea or preposition not derive from experience but form and used to explain certain facts or to provide the foundation or primary assumption of an argument. This study is aimed at examining motivation and productivity of junior workers in Ngor-Okpala local government council. Therefore, the following assumptions are made:

    1. Poor or inadequate salary is the cause of low productivity in Ngor-Okpala local government council.
    2. lack of good working environment affect the productivity of junior workers in Ngor-Okpala local government council
    3. Non-participation of junior workers in the decision making of the local government creates friction between the workers and management and thereby affects their productivity.

      Pages:  59

      Category: Project

      Format:  Word & PDF         

      Chapters: 1-5                                 

      Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • The Role Of Traditional Rulers In National Development (A Study Of Ohaji/Egbema L.G.A, Imo State)

    ABSTRACT

    The study is on “The Role of Traditional Rulers in National Development (A Study Of Ohaji/Egbema L.G.A, Imo State). The study has four objectives and four research questions.  The case study and the survey approaches research design was used for the study. The population of the people of Egbema is about ½ million people. It is from this population descriptions that the same population would be extracted for this study and the sample size was 40 (forty) people. The sampling technique adopted for this study is the simple random which gives every element in the sampling area equal independent chances of being in the sample. Questionnaire was used for collection of data while simple percentage and frequency counts table was used to analyze the research questions. The findings reveal that traditional institutions, even though outdated still play vital roles towards national development, the available laws negate the rights and principles of the traditional institutions, and sometimes make them look rubber stamps. The study therefore recommended among others that, in the context of governance of the modern state, an important issue is the extent to which the traditional authorities may be involved in local government today. Even though excluding traditional rulers from local government is consistent with theories of political development I down playing inscriptive rights, the implication is ominous since there are still wide areas in Africa where no development is possible unless it is routed through the traditional leaders and backed by them. It may be necessary to re-examine the position of traditional rulers no decentralization efforts and consider a meaningful role for them in local affairs.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    1.1     Background of the Study

    Nigeria is a state of Nation is currently in a stated of economic tradition as it attempt to follow in the established pattern of the  rest of the world in moving towards a democratic governing  body and a market economy for a country that is  rooted in ethnic tribes alliance and colonial distinctions, this is a serious endeavor. Creating institution within the country has been the prime factor in achieving the development. These institutions or rules of the game can take on the formal aspect of laws an tangible rules, or an informal nature, which  defines the culture and attitudes of the society. Institutions have played an inherent part in the privatization program eradication of corruption, removal of cultural prejudices and technological development of Nigeria.

    Formal institution includes laws and orders that are enacted by the government and it can still be altered by anyhow mandated programs and instituted laws , informal institutions are much harder to change since it require adjusting the culture of an entire group of principle. The call for national unity by the custodians of our heritage so as the develop the tribal sentiments should be a wakeup call for all Nigerians.

    Since the1970’s the institution of chief family has gained much prominence in the social and political life of Nigeria. The growing importance of traditional rulers (sometime even called natural rulers) in everyday affairs, in local and national politics in Nigeria has then received comparatively little attention by social scientists, especially so far areas where no strong chieftaincy institutions existed in pre-colonial times.

    In the Nigeria context chieftaincy institutions has played a big role in Nigeria, throughout Nigeria, there are numerous well-educated holder of chieftaincy titles with strong business interests, conversely, virtually every successful businessman attempts to acquire such titles. This practice being so common that titles  are nowadays widely perceived to be “purchased” rather than hereditary, or earned as a matter of honor/importance. Politicians accumulate several dozen titles, such honorary titles however, are of a secondary nature in so far they are usually conferred by officially holders of traditional: the traditional rulers.

    Since the LATE 1970/90s, the chieftaincy institution in Egbema of Ohaji/Egbema has flourished remarkable by the late 1980s, one (1) and thirteen (13)  second class rulers but today  there were six (6) government recognized, there were rulers (kings) in Ohaji/Egbema LGA Uzomma [1993:216] carrying the titles Eze, etc. some officially addressed as “HIS  Royal Majesty (HRM) and His Royal Highness (HRH) in Ohaji Egbema LGA. Most of these traditional rulers, are not traditional and their positions has no direct pre-colonial pendent, if any, their office is based on a tradition created rather recently nor do they ‘rule’ in a formal sense. Nevertheless, Ebere Nwaubam (1994:96) in one of the very far long-range historical analysis of the institution, has put it in contemporary Igbo society, traditional ruler, have become permanent and influential guests on the centre stage.

    1.2     Statement of the Problem

    The current opportunities for democratic participation and good governance in most African states seem unprecedented, yet there have been many failures. A significant part of this lies in the overlooked relationship between the contemporary African state and traditional authority. Traditional form as of chieftaincy have come back into the spotlight, especially with respect to the role of traditional rulers as an intermediary  between the state and the citizen or people, a role already created during colonization.

    Although the most value or visible representatives of the original Africa public institutions were  abolished in some parts of the continent in vast areas of Western, Central, Southern and Eastern Africa, they continue  to exist and participate in public affairs on local regional and state levels, either separately or as  members of administration, parliaments or governments.

    Even since that l and mel-administration fated attempt by the erstwhile British colonial administration. In Nigeria to impose on the people a uniform system of local administration, Nigerians have  continued in the endless search for role or function for traditional rles in the country.

    Traditional rulers in Egbema in Ohaji/Egbema local government have no specific functions assigned to them this is because politicians have politicized or messed up the institution, traditional rulers who failed to openly declare these support for the political partly in power are either be dethroned or had their salaries reduced to peanut .

    Apparently not satisfied with the position assigned to them by the 197 local government reform some of these traditional rulers have agitated for increased relevance of the affairs of their communities. They have however succeeded by traditional rulers council in each their various local government areas. But the powers or functions of their councils were merely advisory, which could be easily thrown away by those who set them up. To this end under-stated questions have been postulated to act as the guide to enquires, pursuant to this research study.

    Do traditional rules of Ohaji/Egbema local government make any meaningful contribution to national development? Does the constitution of the country ascribe any roles for traditional rulers? Do Egbema in Ohaji/Egebma local government people still have need for the maintenance of traditional institutions?

    1.3     The Objectives of the Study

    1. To examine the traditional political and administration roles of traditional rulers of Egebma in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area.
    2. To ascertain the area of conflicts among the traditional rulers themselves.
    3. To examine the implication of those conflicts to the development of Egbema in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area.
    4. To offer relevant suggestions for remedy which may lead to socio-political stability and overall development of Egbema in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area.

    1.4     Significance of the Study

    1. This study intents to examine the afore-mentioned objectives in Nigeria and Imo State in particular where conflicts between traditional institution and objects have greatly marred the national development.
    2. The findings would provide a new perspective to the handling of rural conflict amongst our rural populace and also improve peaceful co-existence in our communities, thereby making for further development and growth of Nigeria.
    3. It would also open up a new field in the study of conflict management and rural development in our society Nigeria.

    1.5     Research Hypothesis

    Going by the responsibilities, which this research study behaves on the research study behaves on the research shoulder, the under-mentioned hypothesis have been raised.

    Ho1: There is no significant relationship between traditional ruler’s roles and national development.

    H02: There is no significant relationship between the role of traditional rulers towards national development.

    Ho3: That traditional institutions are indispensable in our society.

    1.6     Limitations of the Study

    The successful completion of this study was limited by the following;

    1. The unwillingness of the respondents to give out information based on the fact that there existed what strained relationship among various traditional rulers in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area.
    2. Distance between various communities in Egbema in Ohaji/Egbema local government area, the researcher strained himself beyond measure by using motor bikes to soon communities that not motorable.
    3. Difficult task of having access to highly placed traditional rulers to get and gather the need data and information.
    4. Time: This is another factor that limited the research study.

    1.7     Definition of Concept/Terms

    National Development: This is the state of nature growing, changing and development politically, economically, socio-culturall, technologically and medially etc.

    Traditional Institution: This is a leader set up especially reserved for the maintenance of peace and order within a given geographic area or entity.


    Pages:  71

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF        

    Chapters: 1-5                                 

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

    Project

  • Impact Of Foreign Direct Investment On The Economic Development In Less Developed Nations; Nigeria As A Case Study

    ABSTRACT

    This study centre on the impact of foreign direct investment on the economic development in less developed nations, using Nigeria as a case study. This has led to the evolution of various schools of thought and several theories, which strive to find solution to the problems of achieving economic, political and socio-cultural growth and development in the modern society. Many schools came up with various theories and principle, which emphasize the mode of achieving the desired increase in productivity. The theoretical framework of this study is Dependency theory. It is the notion that resources flow from a “periphery” of poor and underdeveloped states to a “core” of wealthy states, enriching the latter at the expense of the former. The researcher made use of qualitative method of data collection. It is a secondary method of data collection that makes use of journals, magazines, newspapers, library materials e.t.c. The findings revealed that economic growth is directly related to inflow of foreign direct investment and statistically significant at 5% level. This implies that a good performance of the economy is a positive signal for inflow of foreign direct investment.

    CHAPTER ONE

    1.1 Background of the Study

    The issue of foreign direct investment has been a persistent concern to the developing nations especially Africa. This study centre on the impact of foreign direct investment on the economic development in less developed nations, using Nigeria as a case study. This has led to the evolution of various schools of thought and several theories, which strive to find solution to the problems of achieving economic, political and socio-cultural growth and development in the modern society. Many schools came up with various theories and principle, which emphasize the mode of achieving the desired increase in productivity.

    One of the earthiest school of thought that made on attempt to finding a solution towards achieving increased productivity through foreign direct investment is the modernization school which viewpoint is based  on a fundamental principle in economics that economic growth require capital investment modernization theories are derived from the endogenous growth and neoclassical theories which illustrate that foreign priest investment could stimulate economic growth in developing countries.

    Modernization theory suggests that since economic growth requires capital investment, foreign direct investment, could serves as the engine to economic growth. This school was championed a German social scientist max Weber, which provided the basic for the modernization. Paradigm developed by Harvard social scientist Talcott parsons.

    The purpose of the study is to determine the effect of foreign direct investment on Nigeria and to identity the problem that militates against the growth and development of Nigeria. This study is unique and significance in many ways since social science deals with the study and investigation of human behaviour, this means giving  close attention to how individual in Nigeria on the influence of foreign Direct investment on the  society.

    • Problems of the Study

    It has been observed that foreign direct investment has not yield effective and efficient productivity in Nigeria.

    The problems that arise from the forgoing statements are as following.

    1. How has the indigenous people of Nigeria benefited from foreign direct investment?
    2. What are the devices adapted by foreign direct investors in the development of Nigeria?
    3. What measure can be adopted to develop Nigeria?

    1.3 Research Question

    Based on the problems of this study, the following research questions have been formulated:-

    1. What measures can be taken to improve foreign direct investment in Nigeria?
    2. To what extent has foreign direct investment affected the development or underdevelopment of Nigeria?
    3. What are the factors that militate against adequate development of Nigeria?

    1.4 Objective of the Study

    The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of foreign direct investment in developing nation with a particular reference to Nigeria and with a view to:-

    1. Finding out those developmental techniques or tools of foreign direct investors which may help increase productivity in Nigeria.
    2. Ascertain the extent to which FDI has invested in Nigeria.
    3. Identity the problems that militates against effective and efficient development of Nigeria.
    4. Make necessary recommendation following the findings of the study.

    Significance of the Study

    Social science is concerned with the study and investigation of human behaviour. Nations likewise are concerned with what should be done to achieve sustained and high levels of  productivity through its investment. This means giving close attention to how nations can best be developed effectively and efficiently to achieve set goals.

    This study is unique and significant in many ways. First, the findings of this study will provide reliable date to the people of Nigeria.

    It will provide a reliable and useful literature to the students of government and public administration.

    The findings will also promote and stimulate new ideas and extend the frontiers of knowledge in the area of foreign direct investment in Nigeria.

    1.6 Scope of the Study

    The work is restricted to the study of the effect of foreign direct investment in developing nations using Nigeria as our case study.


    Pages:  73

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF        

    Chapters: 1-5

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.

  • Challenges And Prospects Of Federalism And Political Restructuring In Nigeria

    ABSTRACT

    The trust of this project is to examine the problems of federalism and political restructuring in Nigeria and the manners these problems which constitute fundamental challenges to the Nigerian fledging democracy can be surmounted. The basic minimal structures required for a country to lay claims to the practice of federalism include a political system in which there is power sharing under a written constitution with a government consisting of at least two orders: a central or federal government and the governments of the constituent units. Each order of government receives an allocation of financial resources tailored to their specific requirements. Nigeria has been a federal state since 1954, yet even this basic requirement of federalism has not been attained in the Nigerian federalism. This paper discusses the challenges federalism and restructuring in Nigeria’s political development, and also recommends that there should be an overhaul of the political system through constitutional amendment process to expunge provisions that negate federalism and provide for implementation of true federalism.

    KEY WORDS: Federalism, Political, Restructuring, Accountability.

    CHAPTER ONE

    INTRODUCTION

    • BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

    Nigeria has undergone a long process of restructuring in terms of the number of geo-political administrative units constituting the polity. This process is popularly referred to as “state creation” and/or “reorganization” the process whereby new geo-political units/constituents known as “states” in most federations  created out of existing or old ones. The outcome of this process is usually an increase in the number of states constituting the Nigerian federation. Historically speaking, the issue of state creation in Nigeria started as far back as 1963, when the Midwest was carved out of the former Western Region by the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa administration. In 1967 the country was further divided into 12 states by the administration of General Yakubu Gowon. This progressive increase in the number of territorial units continued in 1976 when the Murtala Administration created an additional 7 states, making the total of states 19. Between 1987 and 1991, General Babangida in two separate exercises, created 11 additional states, bringing the total up to 30. And in 1996, the Abacha administration created 6 more states to make the territorial units of the country 36. In attempting to trace the history and politics of state creation in Nigeria, scholarly opinions vary widely, almost occasioning confusion, with particular reference to the timing of the first exercise. A major means of evaluating the level of civilization of modern political systems are the level and extent to which they are well-organized. The political organization of states most often, reflects the structure of governmental authority, level of administrative efficiency and the attendant power relations. Based on the structure, it is convenient to determine the extent to which authority is dispersed or concentrated in a particular political system. One of the most enduring modes of political arrangement in the world today is federalism. Federalism presupposes that national and states/or regional governments should stand to each other in a relation of meaningful autonomy resting upon a balanced division of powers and resources. Each state or region must have power and resources sufficient to support the structure of a functioning government, able to stand and compete on its own against the others. The attraction for federalism borders on its perceived integrative tendency, which makes it capable of serving heterogeneous societies well in situations of crisis. In the words of Roberts and Simbine (2003) when socially and culturally distinct people find themselves together in the same polity through circumstance of history, to live peacefully together and govern together, they have to strike a balance, which must be acceptable to all the parties involved. Federalism is the system which shares power in such a way that each recipient unit assumes a separate existence and commands relatively exclusive authority over some clearly specified sphere of state activity, in principle, ensures such a balance. However, in spite of its integrative tendency, Odukoya and Ashiru (2007) are quick to point out that federalism does not necessarily posses the magic wand or formula that instantaneously resolves the problems and contradictions of heterogeneous societies. Rather they argue that the socio-economic and political specificities of different societies, coupled with constant and continuous engineering, reengineering and adjustment are needed, if the goals of federalism are to be achieved.

    • STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

    As a system of political arrangement, federalism has endured as one of the most preferred form of governmental authority in the modern world. Its attraction borders on its perceived integrative tendency that serves heterogeneous societies well in situation of crisis. In Nigeria, attempt at integrating the various nationalities towards mutual accommodation and national consciousness provided the incentive for its adoption. However, the politics of domination strategy adopted, particularly by the major ethnic groups shortly after independence created a non-accommodating scenario that seriously undermined the potentials of the federal structure in the country. Also, the emergence of the military on the political scene brought about a military styled federal system of administration characterized by over-centralization. Politics and governance under such an atmosphere of undue centralism created fertile ground for corruption, primordial and explosive ethnic competition. The viability and potentials of sub-national entities as co-ordinate spheres of authority and development was equally undermined, as they became mere appendage of the central government. The eventual outcomes were a general sense of alienation, frustration, insecurity and subjugation. The necessity of harnessing and integrating the country’s diverse indigenous experiences into the governance framework becomes fundamental for proactive and positive civic engagement. Effective mass participation emplaces accountability and transparency which are viable ingredients in the management of governmental powers and resource utilization.

    1.3. OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

    The major purpose of this study is to examine Federalism and political restructuring in Nigeria. Other general objectives of the study are:

    1. To examine the nature of the Nigerian government.
    2. To examine how federalism and political restructuring has help in good governance
    3. To examine the roles of federalism and political restructuring in Nigeria.
    4. To examine the challenges of political restructuring.
    5. To examine the relationship between political restructuring and economic development. We
    6. To suggest ways in which political restructuring can help in developing Nigeria.

    1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

    1. What is the nature of the Nigerian government?
    2. How will federalism and political restructuring help in good governance?
    3. What are the roles of federalism and political restructuring in Nigeria?
    4. What are the challenges of political restructuring?
    5. What is the relationship between political restructuring and economic development?
    6. What are the ways in which political restructuring can help in developing Nigeria?

    1.5.    RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

    Hypothesis 1

    H0: There is no impact of federalism and political restructuring in Nigeria.

    H1: There is a significant impact of federalism and political restructuring in Nigeria.

    Hypothesis 2

    H0: There is no significant relationship between federalism and political restructuring

    H1: There is a significant relationship between federalism and political restructuring.

    1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

    The national question has remained an intractable challenge to Nigeria’s existence. The debate revolves around the demand for restructuring of the federation and the elaboration of governmental structures in the country. The pattern of restructuring advocated has tended to follow closely the way the national question is framed. Federalism, the governmental framework of the Nigerian state, has been the subject of constant demands for tinkering or fundamental reforms since 1954 when it was first adopted, but these demands have been shaped by the underlying discourse on the national question. Thus this study will help the Nigerian government and students in further research.

    1.7    SCOPE OF THE STUDY

     The study is based on federalism and political restructuring in Nigeria.

    1.8 LIMITATION OF STUDY

    Financial constraint– Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

    Time constraint– The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.

    1.9.    CONCEPTUAL PREMISE

    FEDERALISM: This is  the mixed or compound mode of government, combining a general government (the central or ‘federal’ government) with regional governments (provincial, state, cantonal, territorial or other sub-unit governments) in a single political system. Its distinctive feature, exemplified in the founding example of modern federalism by the United States of America under the Constitution of 1787, is a relationship of parity between the two levels of government established. It can thus 0canbe defined as a form of government in which there is a division of powers between two levels of government of equal status.

    POLITICAL:  Relating to government, or the conduct of government, concerned with the making as distinguished from the administration of governmental policy.

    RESTRUCTURING:  Bringing about a drastic or fundamental internal change that alters the relationships between different components or elements of an organization or system.

    ACCOUNTABILITY: As an aspect of governance, it has been central to discussions related to problems in the public sector, nonprofit and private (corporate) and individual contexts. In leadership roles,  accountability is the acknowledgment and assumption of responsibility for actions, products, decisions, and policies including the administration, governance, and implementation within the scope of the role or employment position and encompassing the obligation to report, explain and be answerable for resulting consequences.


    Pages:  73

    Category: Project

    Format:  Word & PDF        

    Chapters: 1-5

    Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.