poverty: Inequality and Human Development in Nlgerla: Appraising the Non-Attainment of the MDGs
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/fe Centre {or Psycho/oglal Studies/ Services, 1/e-/je, Nigeria
Abstract
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The challenge of the 2 I'' century has been how to confront and reduce widespread inequalities and
poverty. This remains the core of development problems that underline the principal objective of
development policy as embodied in the Millennium Declaration. Despite significant improvements
over the past 50 years in advancing human well-being, extreme poverty and inequities remain
widespread in the developing world. The world today is characterized by vertiginous accumulation
of wealth by a few to the exclusion of larger majority who suffer untold hardrhip and
Impoverishment. These conditions have been exacerbated by the adoption of free market paradigm
anchored on private accumulation. This has engendered an overlap of all types of injustice and
social polarization that now define the basis for social life in most countries of the world, including
Nigeria where 70 percent of the population lives below US$ one dollar a day. As an exploratory
study, secondary sources ofdata were engaged to interrogate the policy of market fundamentalism
and the man((estations of inequities it has engendered The paper argued that the lack of access to
essential goods and services for a dignified human existence, the unevenness in the distribution of
incomes and fruits of economic growth, as well as constraints in the access to power, self-esteem
and freedom coupled with the prevalence of ethnic, religious, gender differences and orientations
have generated violence, unrests, war. terrorism and deepen social conflicts- which reinforce the
conditions of growing social inequality. The paper further proposed a restructuring of the present
one-size-fits all model of social relations of economic globalization to one which require closer
economic cooperation, where people and countries collectivezv act together to solve their common
problems qf trade, capital and environment. Besides, there is need for international financial
institutions such as the World Bank/IMF to respect national sovereignty, allow each country 10
make appropriate decisions that will shape and strengthen the process of nation building and better
quality of life. In all, decision-making about economic globalization must be democratic and
recognize that economics is not zero-sum, .but one about transforming the lives of people
Keywords
H Social Sciences (General), HM Sociology