Fighting Poverty through Agriculture

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Among the factors contributing to the shocks were declining prices of oil, the country’s main export, and rises in real international interest rates that compounded the external debt. The major underlying reason, however, was domestic policy mistakes.

He said the government of Nigeria in mid 1986 in a structural adjustment program that included exchange rate devaluation, trade and financial reforms, and budgetary and monetary contraction introduced economic reforms. These reforms were expected to revitalize the economy’s growth. In turn, growth was expected to contribute noticeably to improved equity in the country. 

Interestingly, poverty eradication has become the overriding concern of development perspective in Nigeria, today. However, the method adopted by different governments, rather than solve the problem, has raised more questions and criticisms. Hence, a recent approach announced by the Akwa Ibom State government as its latest focus in poverty alleviation in 2010 deserves attention.

Akwa Ibom State is blessed with a wide array of mineral resources such as kaolin, natural gas, lateritic clay, petroleum, crude oil, and a host of construction minerals, although, for now most of these resources are not being exploited. Concentration has been on petroleum and to some extent natural gas exploitation.

Source: African World News