An Appraisal Of Development Administration In Enugu State: Challenges And Prospects

AN APPRAISAL OF DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION IN ENUGU STATE: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS

ABSTRACT

This research work focuses on appraisal of development administration in Enugu state challenges and prospects. The research investigated the various methods of development administration used in Enugu state, impact of development administration in Enugu state, challenges of development administration in Enugu state and recommendations on improving development administration in Enugu state. The method of data collection were based on primary and secondary sources. The primary sources include oral interviews and questionnaire while the secondary sources are documentary materials ranging from books, magazines newspapers, journals, articles to internet materials. The available data were analyzed using the simple frequency and percentage tables. The findings showed that political and constitutional environment; federal and local Government character; economic environment of the Nigerian administrator; shortages of skills and tools; difficulties of organization and structure; political difficulties; and cultural and attitude barriers are the challenges confronting development administration in Enugu state. Based on the analyzed data, the following recommendations were made: Planning process of Enugu state government should be effective, Enugu state government should maximally develop the political will to implement her polices and programmes, development activities of Enugu state government should be participatory proper enlightenment of the masses for effective mobilization and some vices like nepotism, favouritism, parochialism and others should be eliminated in the state policy process and civil service.

1.0     INTRODUCTION

1.1  BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 1

       Development administration represents those aspects of public administration and those changes in public administration which are required to carry out programmes polices and projects to improve social and economic conditions. In other words, it denotes administration for development, administration for changes, development of administration.

       Development administration is an important instrument or strategy in the development stages or process of any country. It is the use of public institutions like marketing boards, public corporation, Tribunals, commissions, committees and certain essential administrative methods employed to attain quicker development government all over the world use its, administrative authority  in achieving national development government task. It achieves this by formulating, organizing and implementing large scale action programmes. It is in these public organizations and their proper functioning that developing country like Nigeria can translate their political will into concrete policy measures and of course put them into practice for actualization of national goals. Development administration played a vital role in the development of most industrialized and other advanced countries of the world.

       In this study the researcher wants to explore the extent which Nigeria has  met the various indexes of development in the quest to develop such issues as in economic and social system, improvement in income and output, radical changes in institution social and administrative structures will be highlighted. This research work will evaluate how the economic system seek to raise living standard, widen extensively the scope of productive work at the community level and create or strengthen the necessary foundations or infrastructure for higher large and more beneficial changes in the economy. This work will also evaluate the impact of social system on education, health, housing, sports, culture and social justice. The study should also highlight the political system and how it seeks to create better pattern of legitimacy which are good and value.

1.2 STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEMS 3

       Development administration must be able to adopt itself to the changing circumstances for it to be a mechanism of development process. One of the most important components of development administration is the administrative strategies and yet it is itself one of the resources that is highly needed in the developing countries like Nigeria and even in the social transformation of the society, administrative strategy or capability has much to contribute.

       Development as a concept of economic and social indicators. It covers other areas as improvement of human resources and positive change in their behavior, indeed development includes increase in citizen access to water and shelter, information and means of communication and quality health care delivery.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY4

1.  To evaluate various methods of development administration used in Enugu State

2.  To determine the impact of development administration in Enugu State

3.  To ascertain the challenges confronting development administration in Enugu State

4.  To make recommendations on improving development administration in Enugu State

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS4

    i.        What are the various methods of development administration used in Enugu state

   ii.        What are the impact of development administration in Enugu State

 iii.        What are the challenges of development administration n Enugu in Enugu State.

 iv.        What are the possible recommendations on improving development administration in Enugu State.

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY5

       This study will be relevant to Enugu State government as well as other state governments in Nigeria in their quest to attain enviable and admirable development. In addition, the study will contribute immensely to Nigerian development administration.

1.6 SCOPE OF THIS STUDY5

       This study concentrates of the appraisal of development administration in Enugu State. It also examined the impact of development administration in Enugu State. The study equally evaluated various methods of development administration used in Enugu State as well as provided recommendations on improving development recommendations on improving development administration in Enugu state.

1.7 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY5

       It was not easy to get people to cooperate diving the questioning and interviews. It was difficult to get approval for the background of the study. The time of administering the research instrument was limited. Also, money services as a limiting factor as there was not enough money available to administer and conduct the research.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS6

       DEVELOPMENT: It can be defined as a progression, movement and advance towards something better. It is improvement on the material and non- material aspect of life which involves actions, reaction and motions.

       It is a process which involves radical changes in attitudes and in many cases customs and beliefs. Hence for development to take place it must involve the economic political, social and psychological transformation of communities in order to raise their living standards.

PUBLIC POLICY: It can be defined as the principled guide to action taken by the administrative executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs.

Appraisal: It can be defined as an act of assessing something or someone

Prospects: It can be defined as the possibility or likelihood of some future event occurring

CHALLENGES: It can be defined as a act or statement of defiance

ADMINISTRATION: It can be defined as the process of organizing resources efficiently to accomplish a goal. It is the effective combination of human and material resources for the attainment of set objectives. Administration may be public, private, civil or military large or small scale.

DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION: It represents those aspects of public administration and those changes in public administration which are required to carryout programmes, polices and conditions. In a concise manner, it denotes administration for development, administration for changes and development of administration.

1.9 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY7

       There are two major contending paradigms that seek to explain the problem of development and under development in the third world namely the modernization school sometimes refereed to as the liberal or orthodox school and the under development or Radical school.

       The view of the modernization school is that the persistence of under development in the third world is due to the existence of conservative culture and traditional institution as well as lack of achievement motivation and positive orientation towards changes. The modernization school of thought generally views development and underdevelopment from various perspectives. These include the psychological, cultural political institutional and economic perspective.

       Existence of attitudinal and personality variable among third world producers which do not motivate them tow ands innovation is said to be responsible for the low level of development in the third world societies .

       The main argument of the social-cultural theorist is that achievement motivation and innovative drive are important factors in the development process as postulated by Hagem and Mcland

       The main argument of economic perspective is that economic development follow in stages which nations must of necessity pass through to achieve economic growth.

       The second theory is the underdevelopment school it criticized the modernization school and argued that to understand the phenomenon of underdevelopment the specific historical experience of the underdevelopment countries in terms of the mode of their incorporation into the capitalist economy, the functions within  it, and the mechanism for sustaining the conditions, underdevelopment must be considered (Ollawo, 2000). The underdevelopment school focused on the dependency syndrome, the internalization of capital and the mode of production approach.