POVERTY REDUCTION IN NIGERIA: PROGRESS, CHALLENGES AND THE WAY FORWARD UNDER THE NEEDS POLICY

Abstract

This article examines the effectiveness of the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) policy implemented by the Nigerian government as a means of poverty alleviation. It argues that NEEDS is merely an extension of the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP), which has further deepened the country's economic and social crises instead of ameliorating it. The article reviews past poverty eradication efforts in Nigeria and highlights the complexity and multidimensionality of poverty. The study concludes that NEEDS as a reform program is insufficient in addressing the root causes of poverty in Nigeria and recommends a new approach to poverty alleviation that involves the removal of structural bottlenecks and an overhaul of the country's political, social, and economic architecture. Moreover, the article suggests that Nigeria's economic growth and development can be achieved by addressing poverty, illiteracy, high unemployment rates, and malnutrition, among others