A REVIEW OF RURAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT POLICIES AND PROGRAMMES IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Public policies and programmes in Africa towards the betterment of rural communities have been formulated and implemented over the years with the help of governments, institutions, international organisations, agencies and non-governmental organisations to bring about grassroots development. This paper reviewed rural community development policies and programmes in Nigeria and suggested a way for improvement. The work relied on the content analysis of the policies objectives and examined the effectiveness of the policies and programmes. Findings revealed that past efforts made by the Nigerian government through several methods towards rural community development did not bring about desired results. Also, interventions by international organisations contribute little or no meaningful improvement to the living conditions of the rural dwellers. It is therefore recommended that, since most of Nigeria population lives in the rural areas and produce the greatest wealth of the nation, the rural areas should be accorded much recognition in terms of budgetary allocations and provisions of social and economic amenities. Community development policy initiatives should be developed for the country by the legislature and be adhered strictly to by all tiers of government. Also, culture of continuity should be adopted in governance among all levels of authority in the country.