A HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF NATIONAL ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY (NEEDS) AND HER CONTRIBUTION TO POVERTY ALLEVIATION IN NIGERIA

A HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF NATIONAL ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY (NEEDS) AND HER CONTRIBUTION TO POVERTY ALLEVIATION IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
National Economic Empowerment Development strategy (NEEDS) is described as a Nigeria’s plan for prosperity, popularly Christened a “Home grown
programme” by the formal president of Nigeria Chief Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo, it is a four years medium term plan for the period of 2003 to 2007.1 NEEDS is
a Federal Government plan, which also expects the state and local governments to have their counterpart plan i.e State Economic Empowerment and
Development Strategy (SEEDS) and the Local Government Empowerment & Development Strategy (LEED) respectively. Since according Nwachuku
development planning must be controlled and directed toward the desire goals.2 It is imperative for the federal government to include not all levels of
government towards moving the same direction but sick all and sundry namely: the private sector, the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the
general public in cooperative activities in pursuit of developmental goals,.
However, like the previous development planning especially from the first attempt in 1946 and in the opinion of scholars like Rodney Obikeze and Obi,3
NEEDS as a plan contains all the envisaged policies and programme of the federal government. It is not only a macro-economic plan document, but also a
comprehensive vision, goals and principles of a “New Nigeria” through re-enacting core Nigeria value like respect for the elders, honesty, accountability,
corporation, industry, discipline, self confidence and moral courage. As established NEEDs document, “NEED” significantly want to eradicate poverty and
promote self-reliance, entrepreneurship innovation, and rewards hard work. As rightly observed by the National Planning Commission and Central Bank of
Nigeria 4
Thus, development plans is not understood in terms of economic development alone and so to scholars like Todaro and Rodney 5 it is multi dimensional.

1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
Evaluating the present Government policy via its achievement of ‘NEEDs’ core objective seem to portrait the government no different from the .previous ones
in ways and manner of pursuing and realizing the ideals of her development plan. However, this research work is designed to understand the imperative path
to be followed by the federal government at achieving desired goals, and dissert the way it does things.

A HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF NATIONAL ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY (NEEDS) AND HER CONTRIBUTION TO POVERTY ALLEVIATION IN NIGERIA