•  
  •  

ScholarWorks > HHS > Social Work > JSSW > Vol. 51 > Iss. 3 (2024)

 

Keywords

Social protection, poverty, inequality, social welfare, social security, Nigeria

Abstract

Poverty and inequality are major issues that fuel agitations and violent conflicts in Nigeria today. Although the Nigerian government continues to implement various social protection strategies, these have not been able to bridge the vast poverty and inequality gap in the country. This study examines social protection programs in Nigeria. It draws out observable challenges in the implementation of these programs and provides recommendations for improving social protection schemes in the country. The study adopts a qualitative historical analysis approach with data obtained from secondary sources. The study reveals that social protection schemes have largely failed to bridge the widening inequality gap due to major challenges such as low coverage, corruption and institutional deficits, poor targeting, monitoring and evaluation strategies, and lack of political commitment. To address these challenges, the article concludes by recommending that social protection should be more focused on skill acquisition; there should be good governance, adequate funding, wider coverage, and effective collaboration among stakeholders in managing social protection strategies.

Download

Off-campus users:

You may need to log in to your campus proxy before being granted access to the full-text above.

Share

COinS