Dudley Seers (1969) a development expert asked three pertinent questions that borders on social and economic development. These three pertinent questions are pivotal for economic progress, growth, development, stability, peace and security. For an all inclusive development to happen in any given society, these three questions need to be answered and addressed by the political leaders. These three pertinent questions are:
1.What has happen to poverty? (#SDG 1)
2.What has happen to unemployment? (#SDG8)
3.What has happen to inequalities? (#SDG 10)
These three germane questions are very much related and have a very strong connection with the united nations (UN) sustainable development goals (SDGs) of #SDG1, #SDG8 and #SDG10. All the targets of these goals are to be met in all countries of the world by 2030. There cannot be any meaningful societal development if these three variables are not properly addressed by duty bearers to ensure that the gap between the rich (upper class) and the poor (lower class) of the society are bridged. Most societal ills and vices erupted into a large scale proportion in the society because these three important questions asked by Dudley Seers (1969) still remains unanswered by the political class in Nigeria. In Nigeria for instance, the country has been faced with a myriad of insecurity problems and challenges which has throwned the security architecture of the country into disarray despite government efforts to combat insurgency and terrorism in Nigeria. Since the upsurge of insurgency and terrorism in Nigeria in 2009, Nigeria has been battling to overcome with her insecurity challenges to date but to no avail. Deadly terrorist groups such as boko haram, Islamic state of west africa (ISWAP) indigenous people of Biafra (IPOB) has continued to wreck havoc to people's live, properties and government's institutional infrastructures unabated. A lot of factors has necessitated for the spring up and the proliferations of armed groups, militia groups and agitators in Nigeria. For Nigeria to overcome her insecurity challenges, our political leaders (duty bearers) need to answer these three pertinent unanswered questions as postulated by Dudley Seers (1969) to end Nigeria's insecurity challenges.
1. What has happen to poverty? (#SDG 1): Poverty is one of the main drivers of insecurity problems in Nigeria. Until the issue of poverty in Nigeria is tackled headlong with all amount of seriousness by those in position of authority, young people will continue to be lured into criminal gang groups by criminals as a lucrative way out of poverty and a get rich quick avenue to escape poverty. Poverty accounts to about 45% as a causative factor that pushes young people into criminal tendencies. The non- challant attitude of Nigeria's political leaders both past and present towards addressing the issue of poverty in Nigeria has contributed negatively to the present insecurity challenges in Nigeria today. Over 100 million Nigerians live in extreme poverty with less than a dollar per day. A greater number of these population are the youth. A large army of young people remained unemployed with no sustainable means of livelihoods. And the political elites and leaders in the country are paying lip service to this issue with no concrete development plan policies to eradicate poverty in Nigeria. This development puts Nigeria on a danger zone and the country sitting on a timed bomb ready to explode. Addressing the issue of stomach infrastructure (physiological needs) of the citizenry and establishing sustainable poverty alleviation programs for job creations by the political leaders should be the top most priority of any leader, which will go a long way to reduce poverty in Nigeria and also will reduce the level of criminalities in the country.
2. What has happen to unemployment? (#SDG8): Unemployment is also one of the drivers of insecurity problems in Nigeria. It can be regarded as the biggest economic challenge facing Nigeria today. Every year, Nigerian educational institutions churn out graduates from the tertiary institutions across Nigeria in their hundreds of thousands into the labour market without available jobs for the Nigerian graduates. Approximately 2 million Nigerian graduates are pushed into the labour market yearly. This situation has remained same year in year out resulting in high level of unemployment rate among the teeming Nigerian youths with no skills as a plan B for sustainable livelihood. Unemployment accounts to about 45% as a causative factor that pushes young people into criminal tendencies. This means that poverty and unemployment account to 90% of factors that leads young people into criminal gang groups. The Nigerian insecurity challenges can be defeated if our political leaders do the needful by creating an enabling environment for small and medium scale businesses to thrive so that young school leavers and graduates can engaged in start up businesses for a meaningful livelihoods. Young school leavers and Nigerian graduates from tertiary institutions across the country with lofty and great business ideas should have easy access to credit and loan facilities with very minimal or zero interest rate, flexible repayment plan to establish small and medium scale enterprises to create jobs for the youths, so as to stimulate and boost the economy for wealth creation which will in turn reduce criminality among the youths drastically. Government too should create that favourable business climate and environment for the ease of doing business in Nigeria, and makes the economy more private sector driven to attract both local and foreign investors to create new job opportunities for the teeming Nigerian youths. Another factor that creates room for high unemployment rate in Nigeria is the liquidation of companies operating in Nigeria. The Nigerian industrial sector is in a state of total comatose, with more than half of government own companies now moribound and ours leaders are not making any concerted efforts to revatilised these ailing companies back to life to create jobs for the teeming Nigerian youths. Until our political leaders addresses the issue of unemployment in Nigeria by creating jobs opportunities and skills acquisition training programs for the Nigerian youths to be self reliance the issue of insecurity in Nigeria will still persists.
3.What has happen to inequalities? (#SDG 10): Another serious issue that has been neglected and relegated to the background and refuses to gotten the attention of the political leaders in Nigeria is the issue of inequalities. Day in day out the issue of inequality in Nigeria is widening between the rich and the poor, the rich is getting richer and the poor is getting poorer everyday. This anomalies puts the lower class of the people in the society, Nigerians to be precised in undue pressure trying so hard to survive and to meet up with the rich class in the society. And in so doing the only alternative way for those in the lower rungs (the downtroddens) of the society to get to the top so fast is through criminality. When inequalities are addressed and the widening gaps between the rich and the poor are bridged, the rate of criminality will also reduced. So it is very pertinent for Nigerian political leaders to do all they can to reduced inequalities in Nigeria if we must win the war against criminality, insurgency and insecurity in Nigeria.
In conclusion, these three key variables are good economic strategies to be adopted by any political leader who wants to transform the lives of his citizens for the better and also to use it as a tool to curtail and eradicate criminality in the society. I will urged Nigerian political leaders to key into these three variables and see within a specific timeframe if these pertinent questions are answered in the Nigerian context, whether the issue of insecurity will not reduced drastically to the barest minimum in Nigeria.
#GlobalGoals #SDGs #SDG2030 #Agenda2030 #SDG1 #SDG8 #SDG10 #ECOWAS #AU #EU #UKinNigeria #UN_Nigeria #euinnigeria #UNICEFNigeria #UNICEF #UNDPNigeria #UNDP #UN.
Comrade Enobong Ekwere is a social influencer, blogger, human rights activist, SDGs advocate and a global citizen. He is the program manager of children and young people living for peace (CYPLP) a youth focused and a think-tank non-governmental organization based in Kaduna,Nigeria. He can be reached via: Tel: +2347082558952
Email: julyenobong2020@gmail.com
: enobongekwere825@gmail.com
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/enobongekwere
Website: www.cyplp.net.ng
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