THE ROLE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN RURAL DEVELOPMENT ISSUES

The central aim or focus of this paper is to highlight the role of local government (being the closest tier of government to the grassroots) in rural development. The paper posits that the Nigerian political arrangement negates the essence of federalism (which is decentralization) by being highly centralized. The fiscal practices grossly skewed in favour of the central government couple with lack of accountability among the governing elites conjoin to thwart efforts at meaningful development in the third tier of governance. The paper is made up of Abstract; Introduction; Conceptual Clarification; Self-help as an issue in rural development; Nexus between local government and Rural Development; Approaches to Rural Development, Conclusion and Recommendations. It concluded that local governments have not been able to play their constitutional roles, let alone making attempts at rural development due in the main to the fact that they have been emasculated by other tiers of government. It suggested the Integrated Rural Development (IRD) approach in view of its comprehensiveness for sustainable rural development. The paper strongly recommended autonomy for local governments. It further canvassed fiscal and political reforms as avenues for strengthening governance in the Nigerian local government system.