Question: Discuss how Corruption has led to Under-Development of Nigeria (Base your arguments based on sectors of the

Nigerian Economy)

Corruption, especially Political corruption, is one of the basic problems facing the development of the Nigerian economy.
According to the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), a popular corruption indicator, Nigeria is ranked 136 th out of 177
countries measured by the index. President Muhammadu Buhari defined corruption as the greatest form of human right
violation. Since the creation of modern public administration in the country, there have been cases of official misuse of funds
and resources] The rise of public administration and the discovery of oil and natural gas are two major events seen to have led
to the increase in corrupt practices in the country. The government has aimed at containing corruption through the enactment
of laws and the enforcement of integrity systems, but success has been slow. As at 2012, Nigeria is estimated to have lost over
$400 billion to corruption since independence.

As a result of the inability of Nigerian leaders to reduce the level of corruption since independence, the masses and sectors of
the Nigerian economy have highly suffered in the following ways:

1. The oil sector which accounts for most of Nigerias foreign exchange earnings in her economy has had money stolen
by the wealthy elites. This had led to poor infrastructural development as 55% of Nigerias population have had
difficulties in providing themselves and their families the basic necessities of life (Food, Clothing and Shelter) as a
result of the misuse of oil money. Also many wealthy persons have been involved in the illegal trading of oil barrels
(oil smuggling) thus denying the oil money to the masses
Likewise the industrial sector which contributes 27% of Nigerias GDP (Gross Domestic Product) has suffered a
poor contribution as a result of corruption. This is due to the fact that Nigeria is still unable to provide permanent
electricity for its industries. Also, Mills such as the steel mills in Niger-Delta and Ajaokuta respectively. Due to
highly paid contracts and kickbacks to contractors on projects which were paid little or no attention to, Nigeria is
still unable to see the gains of her industries.
The service sector which contributes about 55% of Nigerias GDP has also suffered poorly because of the corrupt
activities of politicians and government officials. This is seen in the Transportation sector where there are poor
roads which are seen all around Nigeria which have led to the the numerous road accidents in the country. Also the
Railway system has been highly neglected by the government because the money meant to be given or money given
to the Nigerian Railway Corporation has been misused by those in authority. The government implementation of
100% destination inspection of all goods entering Nigeria has resulted in long delays in clearing goods for importers
and created new sources of corruption, since the ports lack adequate facilities to carry out the inspection
Likewise the education sector in the country has suffered a tremendous fall in its standards. Public schools owned
by the Federal and State governments do not have the necessary materials and facilities for proper learning as well
as the poor accommodation facilities that the students have to bear with. This has resulted in the low standard and
quality of graduates coming from Nigerian Universities.

2. The Agricultural sector, which contributes 19.8% to Nigerias GDP has suffered from years of mismanagement,
inconsistent and poorly conceived government policies, neglect and the lack of basic infrastructure . Institutions such
as Commodity boards and research institutes of Cocoa, groundnut and Rubber have had allocated funds either
mismanaged or misused. Agriculture is the main employment sector in Nigeria, Employing 80% of Nigerias
population. Due to Nigerias Mismanagement of funds meant for agriculture, the Nigerian nation has not been able
to provide enough food for her population and is not been able to be self-sufficient in food production, instead
importing foodstuff from nations such as Thailand, Indonesia etc. Also, the land tenure system in Nigeria does not
encourage modern agricultural practices. This had led to the use of traditional implements like hoes, cutlass etc.

3. Due to corruption, other sectors such as tourism and mining have declined. This is because these industries are not
adequately funded for and have had cases were their corporations and ministries have solen such money instead of
investment in mining of solid minerals. Nigeria has the potential to be a tourist attraction but poor funding coupled
with mismanagement of funds allocated to them. Due to these problems, Nigerias tourist and mining industries are
in a weak state and this has prevented a diverse economy from occurring.
Question 2: Suggest ways that the Nigerian economy can be paired with developing economies by 2020.

Nigeria is an emerging economic power in the international stage. It practices a mixed economy which combines both public
and private sector organization and is an emerging market economic system. Nigeria has already reached lower middle income
status according to the World Bank, with its abundant supply of human and natural resources such as coal, tin, gold, steel,
limestone, rubber etc. well-developed financial, legal, communications, transport sectors and stock exchange (the Nigerian
Stock Exchange), which is the second largest in Africa.

Nigeria was ranked 30th in the world in terms of GDP (PPP) in 2012 Nigeria is the 50th-largest export market for US goods
and the 14th-largest exporter of goods to the US. The United States is the country's largest foreign investor. The International
Monetary Fund (IMF) projected economic growth of 9% in 2008 and 8.3% in 2009. The IMF further projects an 8% growth
in the Nigerian economy in 2011. With all these things in place, Nigeria has the ability potential to fulfill its full potential and
become one of the greatest economies in the world

However, the progress of the Nigerian economy to achieve its full potential has been seriously hindered since independence
on October 1st 1960. Both Civilian and military government have prevented this happening in ways such as the high level of
corruption among political figures, Mismanagement and misuse of allocated funds and the overdependence of the oil sector at
the expense or neglect of other sectors. These, as well as poor implementation of policies have negatively affected Nigeria

However, with all these problems, there are still ways to get the Nigerian economy to realize its potential. Some of these ways
are:

1. Diversification of the Nigerian economy: In the present time, the problem facing the Nigerian economy is the over-
reliance and over-dependence on the oil sector whist paying little or no attention to the other sectors such as
Agriculture, Mining, and Transportation etc. Before independence and the discovery of crude oil, Agriculture was the
backbone of the Nigerian economy. There was Cocoa in the West, Palm Kernel in the East and Groundnut in the
North. With the discovery of oil came the Neglect of these Agricultural products. Nigeria is made up of Many natural
resources so should not be dependent on only one product(crude oil) but promote search and use of others such as
Gold, Limestone, Rubber, Tin and Columbite etc as well as develop its service sectors such as tourism and
transportation(most especially roads and the railways system) and telecommunications(Glo, Visafone and Airtel).
This can increase revenue for the country as well as a backup for the economy in case of a breakdown in the oil sector.

2. Increased investment in Educational facilities and Literacy: Nigerias Literacy rate compared to developed economies
is poor. Nigerian Literacy rate stands at 59.6%. This is poor compared to France (99%) and Singapore (96.8%).
This gap continues to widen due to lack of proper investment in the Nigerian educational system and the poor facilities
evidently seen in public schools due to little or no investment by the government. For Nigeria to catch up to these
nations, the government should increase it attitude and investment towards educational systems by developing a much
broader curriculum and providing the necessary equipment for schools. If proper investment in Literacy is done, it
will promote a highly skilled workforce in the long run thus promoting increased productivity and economic growth

3. Agricultural Development and restructure: Agriculture is the backbone of the Nigerian populace. It employs 80% of
our population. It has badly suffered due to year of mismanagement and neglect by the federal and state governments.
As seen, The agriculture in Nigeria is very backward as farmers still apply traditional methods such as the us of simple
implements such as hoe, cutlass, spade, rakes etc. as well as the use of traditional farm cultivation methods such as
shifting cultivation. This is due to conservative attitude among farmers and illiteracy among them. These problems
highlighted above could be solved by granting subsidies and grants to farmers and improving agricultural extension
and education. The government can also use and encourage modern technology such as tractors, harvesters etc. This
can boost food production and help Nigeria be self sufficient in food.

4. Promotion of Indigenous companies (Protectionism): As seen in Japan and South Korea, indigenous companies such
as Toyota, Samsung, Sony, Honda etc. were protected by their government from the exploitative nature of British,
European and American companies such as Chevrolet, Nokia, Motorola etc. However, the same is not applicable to
Nigeria. The companies mostly found in Nigeria are Multinational owned by Foreigners e.g. Unilever. What the
government needs to do is to ensure that the indigenization decree is properly implemented. This will ensure Nigerians
with business sense and management of their own companies. Government should also make sure that these
companies are strong enough to compete with foreign companies