Introduction

Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country with nearly 186 million people. Its GDP of $405 billion makes it Africa’s largest economy. Since 2000, life expectancy has increased steadily from 46 to 53 years, and child mortality fell from 187 per 1000 live births to 104 (The World Bank, 2019).

Despite these promising statistics, Nigeria’s economic progress has not reached a substantial amount of the population. In 2018, Nigeria surpassed India as the country with the most people living under the $1.90-per-day poverty line (Adebayo, 2018). With a Gini coefficient of .43, Nigeria remains highly unequal (UNDP, 2016).

Proportionally, Nigeria’s economy is led by the service sector, which comprises around 30% of its GDP. Next follows the agriculture sector (24%), the oil industry (18%), and then its flailing manufacturing sector (9%). Oil makes up 55% of the country’s total export revenues (Kingsley, 2017).

National politics are dominated by the All Progressives Congress (APC) which in 2015 defeated the previously dominant Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP). In 2019, Nigeria will hold its sixth general election since the establishment of the Fourth Republic. Olusegun Obasanjo’s presidency, from 1999 to 2007, sought to put Nigeria on a path to stable economic development after the turmoil of previous decades. An important aspect of his second term as president was the rollout of the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS). NEEDS became Nigeria’s guide for its economic policies from 2004 to 2007 and suggested to the international community that the state was prepared to play a positive role in the economy.

Since such plans require an extensive amount of time and resources it is important to answer the age-old question: is it worth it?

My findings suggest that even with the shortcomings of past plans, including NEEDS to reduce poverty and develop the country, Nigeria is better off pursuing development plans that serve the interest of the country’s poorest. The state should not be afraid to play a larger role in the economy.

Section II explores the historical context of the role Nigeria’s state has played in creating national development plans and the lead up to NEEDS. Sections III through V discusses NEEDS, and its impact with special attention given to its role in poverty reduction and national development planning. Section VI summarizes Nigeria’s development planning in terms of its historical context, impact, and legacy.