AN ANALYSIS OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE IN THE EDUCATION SECTOR OF NIGERIA: IMPLICATIONS FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Government is a human organization which exists for the maintenance of cohesion and order in a country (Hinchliffe, 1989). On the other hand, education, which could be formal or informal, serves as one of the major instruments of Government for inculcating in the people, the norms, morals and other behavioural patterns that are necessary for the survival of the people as a nation. Consequently, the level of a country’s development is significant in determining the role of the Government in a society. In traditional societies, where education is non-formal and is a collective responsibility of the people, a loose or unstructured form of government exist that ensures the child is fully integrated into the culture of the people. The role of Government in such a society may not be financially involved in curriculum planning and implementation but is manifested in the enforcement of sanctions on people for anti-social behaviour. In contemporary society however, Gbenu (2012) has asserted that government is more pervasive by participating in education through curriculum design and innovations, provision of equipment, personnel and funds for supervision and control of man and materials. In contemporary society therefore, while it is acknowledged that the private sector has a role to play in society, it is abundantly clear that the primary role of Government is to educate its citizenry. For Nigeria Nwaogwu (1997) noted that a crisis developed in the educational sector in terms of funding following the sharp decline in government revenue funding brought about by the decline in oil prices in the international market in the early 1980s. The result was unpaid teacher salaries, degradation of education facilities at all levels and strikes in universities and schools resulting in declining literacy rates in the country (Odukoya, 2009). Thus with reduced funding for primary education, school fees were reintroduction in the 1980s, leading to lower access to education at the primary level. Indeed, primary school enrolments fell or stagnated in some states during this period (Osili, 2005). This outcome quickly points to the fact that reduced investment in the education sector not only has effects on the quality of education in terms of infrastructure and capacity, access to education may also be affected. Overall, the development of the education sector is invariably linked to investment into the sector.