Village economic development solution: An innovative strategy for ameliorating rural poverty

Abstract

The paper examines the phenomenon of endemic rural poverty in Nigeria, and the unfortunate perception that urbanization and urban growth have become the main drivers of poverty reduction to the neglect of the rural areas. The paper begins by examining the slow progress in poverty reduction in rural areas which is consistent with slow growth in agriculture. The incidence of rural-urban migration; especially that of the youth, with its serious implications for peasant farming and open unemployment in the urban areas was also addressed. The paper goes on to look at employing an innovative strategy, the Village Economic Development Solution (VEDS) which is designed to stimulate the desire by the rich, as ‘Anchor Personalities’ to give back to the rural areas (villages) where they come from in the first instance through the funding of Anchor Economic Activities (Projects) that can leverage rural living. The paper concludes by recommending partnerships among the tiers of government to create enabling
environment for the implementation of the innovation.