Poverty, Growth and Inequality in Nigeria : A Case Study

Poverty can be defined as the inability to achieve a certain minimal standard of living. With the severe economic shocks that rocked the Nigerian economy during the early 1980s came real and perceived increases in the level of poverty in the country. Among the factors contributing to the shocks were declining prices of oil, the country's main export, and rises in real international interest rates that compounded the external debt. The major underlying reason, however, was domestic policy mistakes. Economic reforms were introduced by the government of Nigeria in mid 1986 in a structural adjustment programme that included exchange rate devaluation, trade and financial reforms, and budgetary and monetary contraction. These reforms were expected to revitalize the economy's growth. In turn, growth was expected to contribute noticeably to improved equity in the country.