Nigeria: Politics, Bane of Poverty in North - Kpakol
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Leadership (Abuja)
11 October 2008
Posted to the web 11 October 2008
National Coordinator, National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP), Magnus Kpakol, has condemned the North for over indulging in politics thus neglecting the region's state of underdevelopment. He made the declaration on Wednesday at the closing plenary session of the Northern Nigerian Economic and Investment Summit (NEIS) 2008, in Abuja.
According to him, "The north has suffered from the effect of too much attention being given to political activities, so much that the 'opportunity cost' of going into politics seems to be low. People have devoted so much attention to it and neglected grassroots economic activities."
The North, made up of 19 states, is noted to make up about 25 per cent of the nation's population and is considered the poorest region in the country.
According to data generated from NAPEP research in 2006, Jigawa State has the highest rate of poverty, rising from 71 per cent as at 1996 to 95 per cent, while Kebbi State followed closely at 89.7 per cent. Kpakol charged the northern elite not to forget their roots, adding that this was the only way to deal with poverty in the grassroots.
"We must start from the village. You need anchor personalities to make the difference; you have to first get northern elites and leaders leading the way before others would join."
He said, "No amount of government fund is enough without the ownership and participation of the people and society in any poverty eradication model. We must take decisive action through channels that directly connect to the people."
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Kpakol explained that the amount of money invested in projects was not the important concern in the fight to eradicate poverty. He, however, called on state governments to focus in answering questions regarding job creation, provision of infrastructure, financial education and improving manufacturing channels.
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