Problems of Development Plans in Nigeria
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Development plan is a document that consists of the overall strategy
for the proper planning and development of an area such as a country.
Measures included in development plans include improvement in the
economy via an increase in gross domestic product, improvement of
literacy rates, improvement of medical facilities, etc.
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The purpose of development plans is to allow for growth, advancement,
and progress of a country. It is highly important that a country has a
development plan. In fact, most countries have their own development
plans. A development plan consists of an intended set of actions and
steps to be taken so as to bring about growth and development. You
might wonder if Nigeria also has a development plan. In fact, the
country has had a long experience with development plans starting from
the pre-independence era; the Colonial Development Plan (1958-1968).
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Other development plans in Nigeria’s history include:
First National Development plan (1962-1968)
Structural Adjustment Programme focused on improvement in the economy
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The Fourth National Development Plan, 1981-1985 which focused on
family planning, rural and urban development and education
Structural Adjustment Programme in the mid-1980s focused on
improvement in the economy
The National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (2004)
focused on poverty reduction and sustainable growth
Millennium Development Goals focused on achieving eight measurable
development goals which included poverty eradication, gender equality,
improvement of health and education
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
7 Point Agenda (2007) which dealt with:Power and Energy
Food Security and Agriculture
Wealth Creation and Employment
Mass Transportation
Land Reform
Security
Education
There was also the Nigeria Vision 2020 (2007) with the objective to
make Nigeria become one of the top 20 economies in the world by
achieving a higher standard of living by the year 2020.
As you can see, Nigeria has not been lacking in development plans, but
one would wonder what the problem has been with the implementation and
why we cannot see the expected results. That is the purpose of this
article, read on below:
Problems of Development plans in Nigeria
Insufficient funding
It is not enough to have a development plan if it is not matched by
the funding needed to implement it. One of the most successful
development plans in Nigeria is the Colonial Development and Welfare
Plan which had a ten-year development and welfare plan for Nigeria. In
1945, the colonial government created the colonial development and
welfare fund which was an initiative to fund the implementation of the
development plan. It was the Colonial Development and Welfare Plan
that birthed the University College Ibadan as the first university in
Nigeria.
It is safe to conclude that the development plan was successful
because there was a specific amount of money put aside to assist in
its funding. Every plan or vision without adequate funding will be
left floating. Insufficient funding of development plans can also be
traced to the following:
Fall in expected revenue in Nigeria. Since Nigeria depends on oil for
the bulk of its revenue, the decline in projected revenue always
affects the funding of the country’s plans and projects.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
Cost escalation due to factors such as inflation which then results in
an underestimation of expenses.
Delays in the allocation and completion of projects also have a result
on finances as there is often an increase in the cost of production at
the time of its execution.
Unavailability of current data
Sufficient and quality data and information is needed for the proper
implementation of a national development plan. For example, in
Nigeria, the federal office of statistics which is a department of the
federal ministry of national planning does not have adequate resources
and equipment to make effective surveys which will help in the
implementation of projects. Nigeria is also known to suffer from poor
state of record-keeping which does not help those planning to do so
rightly. An example of poor record-keeping is with the population
census in Nigeria. It is sad that we cannot arrive at an accurate
number of Nigerians because of corruption and people’s unwillingness
to respond rightly to inquiries.
Lack of Commitment
This is another problem with development plans in Nigeria. The masses
are not involved in the implementation of the development plan
sometimes due to non-interest because they have been previously
disappointed by talks of development plans in tome past. The issue of
lack of commitment by the masses can be solved by reinvigorating trust
in the government and also mass education.
Lack of Public and Private Sensitization
The lack of effective implementation of the National Development Plans
in Nigeria is also a result of a lack of communication between the
government and the public as well as private sectors. Most times,
Nigerians are not sensitized on the objectives underlying the
development plan. Also, private sectors and industries that can be
major stakeholders and facilitators of the development plan are not
consulted or well-informed either. This results in poor contribution
from the masses which then affects the success of the development
plan.
Non-continuity of government projects
A development plan is supposed to be sustainable and flexible so that
any government that comes into power can keep on with its
implementation. However, this has not been the case in Nigeria, each
administration comes up with its new policies and then does away with
that of the previous administration. Most times, elections come with
new government officials and in cases where the new government is from
a different political party from the predecessors, the project might
not continue. This why most projects in Nigeria are never completed
because of the instability of government and their policies.
Corruption
The effect of corruption pervades almost every sector in Nigeria.
Corruption is the root cause of stagnancy in the country. Most times,
the government, those in the planning committee, as well as
contractors, seek their selfish interests. Thus, a huge sum of money
that is supposed to be used for national development and for the
benefit of the masses are unaccounted for as a result of embezzlement
and money laundering.
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jQuery(document).ready(function( $) { $.post(
'https://nigerianfinder.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php', {action:
'mts_view_count', id: '290928'}); });
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Tweet
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Development plan is a document that consists of the overall strategy
for the proper planning and development of an area such as a country.
Measures included in development plans include improvement in the
economy via an increase in gross domestic product, improvement of
literacy rates, improvement of medical facilities, etc.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
The purpose of development plans is to allow for growth, advancement,
and progress of a country. It is highly important that a country has a
development plan. In fact, most countries have their own development
plans. A development plan consists of an intended set of actions and
steps to be taken so as to bring about growth and development. You
might wonder if Nigeria also has a development plan. In fact, the
country has had a long experience with development plans starting from
the pre-independence era; the Colonial Development Plan (1958-1968).
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
Other development plans in Nigeria’s history include:
First National Development plan (1962-1968)
Structural Adjustment Programme focused on improvement in the economy
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
The Fourth National Development Plan, 1981-1985 which focused on
family planning, rural and urban development and education
Structural Adjustment Programme in the mid-1980s focused on
improvement in the economy
The National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (2004)
focused on poverty reduction and sustainable growth
Millennium Development Goals focused on achieving eight measurable
development goals which included poverty eradication, gender equality,
improvement of health and education
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
7 Point Agenda (2007) which dealt with:Power and Energy
Food Security and Agriculture
Wealth Creation and Employment
Mass Transportation
Land Reform
Security
Education
There was also the Nigeria Vision 2020 (2007) with the objective to
make Nigeria become one of the top 20 economies in the world by
achieving a higher standard of living by the year 2020.
As you can see, Nigeria has not been lacking in development plans, but
one would wonder what the problem has been with the implementation and
why we cannot see the expected results. That is the purpose of this
article, read on below:
Problems of Development plans in Nigeria
Insufficient funding
It is not enough to have a development plan if it is not matched by
the funding needed to implement it. One of the most successful
development plans in Nigeria is the Colonial Development and Welfare
Plan which had a ten-year development and welfare plan for Nigeria. In
1945, the colonial government created the colonial development and
welfare fund which was an initiative to fund the implementation of the
development plan. It was the Colonial Development and Welfare Plan
that birthed the University College Ibadan as the first university in
Nigeria.
It is safe to conclude that the development plan was successful
because there was a specific amount of money put aside to assist in
its funding. Every plan or vision without adequate funding will be
left floating. Insufficient funding of development plans can also be
traced to the following:
Fall in expected revenue in Nigeria. Since Nigeria depends on oil for
the bulk of its revenue, the decline in projected revenue always
affects the funding of the country’s plans and projects.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
Cost escalation due to factors such as inflation which then results in
an underestimation of expenses.
Delays in the allocation and completion of projects also have a result
on finances as there is often an increase in the cost of production at
the time of its execution.
Unavailability of current data
Sufficient and quality data and information is needed for the proper
implementation of a national development plan. For example, in
Nigeria, the federal office of statistics which is a department of the
federal ministry of national planning does not have adequate resources
and equipment to make effective surveys which will help in the
implementation of projects. Nigeria is also known to suffer from poor
state of record-keeping which does not help those planning to do so
rightly. An example of poor record-keeping is with the population
census in Nigeria. It is sad that we cannot arrive at an accurate
number of Nigerians because of corruption and people’s unwillingness
to respond rightly to inquiries.
Lack of Commitment
This is another problem with development plans in Nigeria. The masses
are not involved in the implementation of the development plan
sometimes due to non-interest because they have been previously
disappointed by talks of development plans in tome past. The issue of
lack of commitment by the masses can be solved by reinvigorating trust
in the government and also mass education.
Lack of Public and Private Sensitization
The lack of effective implementation of the National Development Plans
in Nigeria is also a result of a lack of communication between the
government and the public as well as private sectors. Most times,
Nigerians are not sensitized on the objectives underlying the
development plan. Also, private sectors and industries that can be
major stakeholders and facilitators of the development plan are not
consulted or well-informed either. This results in poor contribution
from the masses which then affects the success of the development
plan.
Non-continuity of government projects
A development plan is supposed to be sustainable and flexible so that
any government that comes into power can keep on with its
implementation. However, this has not been the case in Nigeria, each
administration comes up with its new policies and then does away with
that of the previous administration. Most times, elections come with
new government officials and in cases where the new government is from
a different political party from the predecessors, the project might
not continue. This why most projects in Nigeria are never completed
because of the instability of government and their policies.
Corruption
The effect of corruption pervades almost every sector in Nigeria.
Corruption is the root cause of stagnancy in the country. Most times,
the government, those in the planning committee, as well as
contractors, seek their selfish interests. Thus, a huge sum of money
that is supposed to be used for national development and for the
benefit of the masses are unaccounted for as a result of embezzlement
and money laundering.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
jQuery(document).ready(function( $) { $.post(
'https://nigerianfinder.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php', {action:
'mts_view_count', id: '290928'}); });
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