POL: 3219

RURAL & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Course Outline
1. Definition and Philosophy of Development
 The Meaning of Development
 Different Dimensions of Development: Economic, Environmental,
Political and Social Development
2. Definition, Nature and Principles of Rural Development:
 The Meaning of Rural Development
 Goals/objectives of Rural Development
 Principles of Rural Development
3. Approaches to Rural Development
a. Bottom to top Approach
b. Places-based Approach
c. African Socialism Approach (Ujama)
d. Community Participatory Approach
e. Integrated Approach to Rural Development
4. Issues in Rural Development
 Financing Rural Development Projects
 The Necessity for Rural Development in Nigeria
 The Problems of Rural Development in Nigeria
5. Definition, Philosophy and Nature of Community Development:
 The Concept of Community
 The Meaning of Community Development
 Goals/objectives of Community Development
6. Historical Development of Community Development
7. Approaches to Community Development
a. Bottom-up Approach
b. Community development Critical Approach
c. Community Driven Development Approach
d. Places-based Approach
8. Principles of Community Development
9. Realities in Community Development
 Methods of Motivating Society for Social Actions via Community
Development
 Problems of the Community Development in Nigeria
  Various Community Modernization Programmes of Governments
10. Interlacing Rural and Community Developments
 Community Development as an Instrument for Rural Development
 Rural Leadership and Community Development

Topic One: (1)

The concept of development and the key dimensions of development

 The Concept of Development

The concept of development has generated extensive discussion and continues to be

a key point of contention between rural and urban communities, as well as between
countries in the northern and southern hemispheres. However, the term
"development" does not have a universally accepted definition, and scholars
approach it from various perspectives. For examples: Dudley Seers (1972), started
by asking three fundamental questions about development, these are; a. What has
been happening in poverty? b. What has been happening in unemployment? And c.
What has been happening in inequality? For Dudley Seers, if the country answers
these three fundamental questions that country is said to have developed, or
otherwise. However, by development he simply means that ability to overcome
poverty, unemployment and inequality. Put differently, Michael P. Todaro (2005),
sees development as a comprehensive integrated approach that improve the overall
economic, social, cultural and political wellbeing of the society. Welter Rodney
(1972), argues that development is the absent of underdevelopment, which simply
means that an improved living standard as characterized in better education,
healthcare, equality, infrastructure and freedom of opportunity. In the same
connection, M.L Jinghan (2005), maintains that development is the responsibility
of the policy makers to initiate macro and microeconomic policies that can influence
the living standard of individual in a given society. (Microeconomics is the study of
how individuals and companies make decisions to allocate scarce resources.
Macroeconomics is the study of an economy as a whole).

From the foregoing, we can understand that development could be seen as any
approach that can increase the welfare and improve the living standard of individual
in the society.

 Key Dimensions of Development

Under this segment we will focus the following dimensions of development these
include; Economic Development, Environmental Development, Political
Development and Social Development,

Economic Development: Economic development refers to the process by which a

community or region improves its economic well-being and quality of life. It
encompasses a variety of initiatives aimed at fostering growth, enhancing
competitiveness, and creating job opportunities. Key elements include:

 Creation of Wealth: Economic development is fundamentally about

generating wealth that benefits the community. This includes investments in
infrastructure, education, and services that support economic activities.
 Job Creation: Initiatives often focus on creating new jobs and retaining
existing ones through business support and workforce development
programs4.
 Quality of Life Improvements: Beyond mere economic metrics like GDP
growth, economic development aims to enhance living standards, access to
services, and overall community prosperity.

Environmental Development: Environmental development emphasizes the

sustainable management of natural resources to ensure ecological balance while
promoting human well-being. It includes:
  Sustainability Practices: This aspect focuses on practices that protect
ecosystems while allowing for economic growth. It involves using resources
in a way that meets current needs without compromising future generations.
 Pollution Control: Effective environmental development includes measures
to reduce pollution and mitigate climate change impacts through cleaner
technologies and sustainable practices.
 Biodiversity Conservation: Protecting biodiversity is essential for maintaining
ecosystem services that support human life and economic activities.

Political Development: Political development pertains to the evolution of political

institutions, processes, and behaviors within a society. It includes:

 Institutional Strengthening: This involves building effective governance

structures that promote accountability, transparency, and rule of law. Strong
institutions are vital for implementing policies that support socio-economic
growth.
 Participation and Representation: Political development encourages civic
engagement and participation in governance processes. Inclusive political
systems ensure that diverse voices are heard in decision-making.
 Policy Formulation: Effective political development also encompasses the
creation of policies that address social inequalities and promote equitable
resource distribution.

Social Development: Social development focuses on improving the well-being of

individuals and communities through social policies and programs. Key aspects
include:
  Education and Health: Enhancing access to quality education and healthcare
is fundamental for social development. These factors contribute to human
capital formation and overall societal progress.
 Social Equity: Social development aims to reduce inequalities by promoting
inclusive policies that empower marginalized groups. This includes efforts to
improve gender equality, reduce poverty, and ensure equal opportunities for
all.
 Community Building: Strengthening community ties through social programs
fosters resilience and enhances collective well-being.

Topic One: (2)

Conceptual Clarifications of Rural

By the way of conceptualizing, the rural areas are sparsely populated, with
settlements often consisting of small villages or dispersed households. Rural areas
are defined as all areas that do not meet the criteria for urban classification. This
includes smaller towns, villages, and agricultural communities where the population
density is low (typically less than 20,000) and economic activities are predominantly
agricultural or resource-based. The lack of infrastructure and limited access to
services further distinguishes rural areas from urban centers.

Principles of Rural/Community Development

For any reliable and sustainable community development, there are some
principles that should be adopted and these include the following:

a. Sustainability: community development projects should be designed and

approach in such a way that it will be permanent and sustainable for many
decades or even beyond. Any projects that is a trial and error or which can
abruptly stop does not deserve to be considered as sustainable and will lead to
problems of development especially in rural areas.

b. Community-oriented: a sound community development should be the one

that is indigenous and community-oriented in nature where the members of the
community are directly involved in the initiation and implementation of the
projects.

c. Reliable: a good community development must be reliable. For example, any

sourcing of drinking water or electricity must be prepared in such a way that it
will have the leverage for generation and distribution without any serious
hindrance. If the projects or the developmental programme is not reliable
permanently, the goal of development cannot be achieved.

d. Economically-driven: community development projects should be designed

in the way that they will be economically driven. This will generate employment,
tax for the government and an economically recycled means of wealth creation.

e. A well-designed plan: a good community development project or programme

must have a well-designed plan of implementation and evaluation to enable for
determining the level of success or failure with a provision for an alternative in
case of a failure.

It should be all-encompassing: community development should be all-

encompassing in terms of encapsulating the political, economic, social and
cultural aspects of development altogether at the same time.

The Goals/Objectives of Rural Development

The goals of rural development as summarized by Alkali, (1997) are as follows:

a. Generation of new employment

 b. More equitable access to arable land (agriculture) suitable for
cultivation
c. Widespread improvement in health
d. Nutrition and housing;
e. Broadened opportunities for all individuals to realize their full
potentials through education
f. A strong voice for all rural people in shaping their decisions and
actions that affect their lives.

However, the National Policy on Rural Development outlined the following

objectives of rural development in Nigeria:

a. Promotion of the social, cultural and economic wellbeing of the

rural population
b. Promotion of sustained and orderly development of the vast
resources in the rural areas for the benefit of the rural people
principally and the nation as a whole
c. Increase in and diversification of job opportunities and improvement
of income in the rural areas
d. Mobilization of the rural population for self-help and self-sustaining
program of development and
e. Upliftment of the technological based industries in the rural areas.

Topic Three: (3)

Approaches to Rural and Urban Development

Bottom to Top Approach: This means that the business of development should be
approached from the perspective of providing developmental projects from rural
areas which will later spread to the urban centers. It means that all policies and
programs should focus more on rural areas than urban areas, because it is the
development in rural areas that will lead to the one in urban areas.

Places-Based Approach: This means that development projects and programs

should consider variations in places based on needs. For instance, a rural area may
be demanding agricultural support while an urban area will be demanding industrial
support. There is one-size-fit-all development policy, place each should be
developed based on their peculiar needs and aspirations.

African Socialism (Ujamaa): This is a Tanzanian Model designed by Mualimu

Julius Nyerere. By Nyerere, the African pre-colonial economy was neither capitalist
nor socialist in nature but African socialism where community development is based
on gathering of people of rural areas in bigger towns where all social amenities
would be provided for all community members.

Community Participatory Approach/Locality Participation Model: This means

that members of the community should be involved in the process of designing
policies and developmental projects and they should be involved in the process of
execution and implementation to ensure community ownership of the developmental
projects.

Integrated Approach to Rural Development: The integrated approach to rural

development (IRD) emphasizes a holistic strategy that considers the
interconnectedness of various sectors and the importance of coordinated efforts
among different stakeholders. This model aims to improve the quality of life in rural
areas by addressing economic, social, and environmental factors simultaneously.

The key principles of integrated rural development include multisectoral

coordination (combining sectors like agriculture, health, education, and
infrastructure for better outcomes.
 TOPIC FOUR

Issues in Rural Development

1. Financing rural Development Projects

One of the challenges of any projects is financing. Financing is the backbone of the
success of any projects or programs. Lack of adequate financing will cripple a good
policy. For a sound and sustained rural development projects, there is a need for a
continuous financing. In this regards, there are various sources of financing rural
development projects. Some of them are enumerated below:

a. Government funding: The government whether at the centers be it federal or

a unitary or a state government can provide funding for rural development
projects including roads, portable drinking water, electricity, culverts, bridges,
communication, hospitals, schools and other basic amenities. The government
can measure the level of backwardness of the rural areas and determine which
of the projects are the most pressing and provide funds for financing them.
b. Community contribution: The members of the rural community can donate
based on their ability to sponsor a project that will develop their rural
communities. This is one of the best means because the members of the
community will now feel that the project is their own and it belongs to them.
They will concentrate in making it a success.
c. Donor intervention: Donors both national and international can provide
funding for rural development projects. There are many civil societies
domestic and international which are specializing in various aspects of rural
development such as basic education, healthcare services delivery, clean
water etc. They provide money for financing such projects.
 d. Joint venture: sometimes the members of the rural community can provide
some counter funding while the government or donors or any other financing
institutions can complement by providing the other parts for the execution of
the projects.
e. Loan: Rural development projects can be financed through borrowing from
banks and other financial agencies or even the projects executors to be paid
later when the projects started pouring in dividends.

2. The Necessity for Rural Development in Nigeria

Rural development is necessary in Nigeria because no meaningful and sustainable

development can be achieved in the country without developing the rural areas.
There are many justifications why rural development is perceived as the only
alternative for an overall sustainable national development.

a. About 70% of Nigerians live in rural areas which means any efforts at rural
development will directly boost the lives of nearly 160 million Nigerians. The
government cannot afford to neglect this number in developmental process.
b. Lack of rural development in Nigeria is leading to massive rural-urban
migration which is leading to overcrowding. Overcrowded cities in Nigeria
are overstretched with crimes and the infrastructures are overwhelmed.
c. If rural areas are not developed in Nigeria, people will not stay in the villages
to cultivate and this will lead to food insecurity.
d. Rural development will guarantee sustained economic development and
community prosperity.
e. Rural development will decrease unemployment, poverty and inequality.
3. The Problems of Rural Development in Nigeria

Despite the benefits and necessity of rural development in Nigeria, there are
numerous problems that are associated with the process of rural development in
Nigeria. Some of the obstacles that impede a successful rural development project
include the following:

a. Inadequate funding
b. Lack of political will
c. Illiteracy
d. Lack of involving community members in designing rural development
policies
e. Corruption
f. Mismanagement of resources and
g. Urban-based fanciful projects

TOPIC FIVE

Definition, Philosophy and Nature of Community Development

The Concept of Community

The term community simply refers to a group of people that are living in a given
area or territory and are sharing a common culture, objectives, goals and means of
livelihoods. A community refers to a group of people on the other hand that identifies
with any other group or people with brotherhood and a unified common goal. The
aim of any community is to develop, progress, prosper and lives in harmony and
cooperation.

The Meaning of Community Development

The term community development refers to the process of initiating projects and
programs that are comprehensive in nature which are designed to achieve a
sustainable and permanent programs. Community development is a means of
designing and adopting as well as implementing some all-encompassing programs
that will guarantee and increase standard of living, economic development, political
sustainability, socio cultural prosperity and overall development of all members of
the society.

Community development is approached from different perspectives. Todaro

believed that modernizing societal institutions is the best means of achieving
community development. Jhingan on the other hand opines that adopting a rural
integration model is the best where the load of the income of the rural people will be
improved to enable for a better saving and investment which will guarantee
prosperity in future. Another approach prefers a comprehensive integrated approach
to community development where social, political, economic and cultural aspects of
the life of the inhabitants of rural areas will be improved.

3. Goals/Objectives of Community Development

For every developmental project, there are goals and objectives that are pre-designed
to give a direction and a clear focus of what should be achieved. Some of the goals
or objectives are as follows:

a. To give the members of the community the sense of belonging

b. To encourage the participation of the members of the community in
designing the path of their own destiny.
c. To design policies that will carry all in the process of national
development.
 d. To ease the process of the implementation of projects by using
community members.
e. To achieve an overall national development.
f. To design policies based on the needs and aspirations of the various
communities.

TOPIC SIX

Historical Development of Community Development

Community development has a long history traced back to the early existence of
mankind. Ever since time immemorial, when mankind started organizing himself
into communities, territories and states, various efforts were introduced by members
of the society to help themselves towards a betterment of their means of livelihood.
Different societies or communities approached the development process through
different methods and styles.

In ancient times, individuals are organized for community development through self-
self where activities of community such as provision of drinking water, irrigation
water, clearing of bush, ways and canals, all able-bodied men gathered in a specific
place in an appointed day to participate in activities that will draw benefits for the
members of the community. In this early stage of community development, there
was no organized government or state. All activities are usually taken by members
of the community in recognition of their responsibility to their environment.

Community development transformed into a more sophisticated and integrated

business during the medieval and modern period of state organization. The
government and policymakers engaged in the designing and formulation of models
for community development through the channeling of funds to provide the most
basic needs of the people in rural areas. In this stage, community services are mostly
provided and serviced by the government.

Community development entered into a new stage in modern times when it was
realized that the government alone could not provide all the needs and services that
the communities need. In this regard, individuals, philanthropies, Samaritans,
wealthy people are all engaged in providing community services for their immediate
and neighborhood communities. Thus, the task of community development shifted
in focus from government-oriented programs to collaboration between government
and stakeholders.

The new face of community development emerged in the 21st century with the
emergence of civil society organizations and other charitable groups that are
integrated in the role of providing major and basic needs of communities.

TOPIC SEVEN

Approaches to Community Development

a. Bottom to top Approach

One of the best ways of facilitating community development is to start from the rural
areas and expand it to the other places including urban centres. The commencement
of development projects and programmes in rural areas has the benefits of driving a
sustainable development at all levels. This approach is known as bottom-to-top
approach or rural-urban driven development programmes. A good example is water
reticulation which should target first, villages before extending to cities because
people in the rural areas are poorer and are at the daring needs for a clean drinking
water than city dwellers who are economically better and can afford to secure their
drinking water even at personal level. The same is said of rural electrification.
b. Community Development Critical Approach

In this approach, the most critical sectors of the community development including
electricity, agriculture, livestock farming, roads, communication, schools,
dispensaries, maternities and hospitals and other basic critical needs are considered
as vital for the survival of the people of rural areas and they must be provided
adequately to generate development. Other aspects that are considered as luxurious
such as town beautification and unnecessary projects like stadium and museum
should be deferred till after a considerable level of development is achieved.

c. Community Driven Development Approach

Community-driven development approach is the one in which the people in the

community are empowered to engage in economic, political and social activities that
will boost growth and development. In this approach, the aim is to foster and
integrate members of the community to design their own model of development
independently without necessarily adopting any external framework or a model from
other communities that may not have a similar condition with them. This is because
what works in community A may not possibly works in community B and this means
there is a need for a separate approach.

d. Places-based Approach

This approach simply denotes that not all communities can be equip or provide with
basics of development at the same time. Some communities may be far ahead in
terms of progress than others. Where a particular community requires drinking
water, another may prefer agricultural inputs like fertilizer and insecticides. Thus,
using various places’ needs at variant levels is better in making the communities to
face developmental process in their own perspectives.
 TOPIC EIGHT

Principles of Community Development

For any reliable and sustainable community development, there are some principles
that should be adopted and these include the following:

a. Sustainability: community development projects should be designed and

approach in such a way that it will be permanent and sustainable for many decades
or even beyond. Any projects that is a trial and error or which can abruptly stop does
not deserve to be considered as sustainable and will lead to problems of development
especially in rural areas.

b. Community-oriented: a sound community development should be the one that

is indigenous and community-oriented in nature where the members of the
community are directly involved in the initiation and implementation of the projects.

c. Reliable: a good community development must be reliable. For example, any

sourcing of drinking water or electricity must be prepared in such a way that it will
have the leverage for generation and distribution without any serious hindrance. If
the projects or the developmental programme is not reliable permanently, the goal
of development cannot be achieved.

d. Economically-driven: community development projects should be designed

in the way that they will be economically driven. This will generate employment,
tax for the government and an economically recycled means of wealth creation.

e. A well-designed plan: a good community development project or program

must have a well-designed plan of implementation and evaluation to enable for
determining the level of success or failure with a provision for an alternative in case
of a failure.
f. It should be all-encompassing: community development should be all-
encompassing in terms of encapsulating the political, economic, social and cultural
aspects of development altogether at the same time.

TOPIC NINE

Realities of Community Development

Methods of Motivating Society for Social Actions via Community Development

There are various methods of motivating society or community for development.

Some of these methods are as follows:

1. Collating views of the members of the society for integration in development

plan.

2. Involving the members of the community in implementation plan and action.

3. Enabling the community to own the projects for ensuring dedication and
commitment from their own parts.

4. Design goals that are feasible and sustainable.

5. Localizing policies and programs to look indigenous in nature.

6. Educating and enlighten societal members on the essence of the projects and
policies.

7. Avoiding forceful imposition of ideas by resource persons and expatriates

when it comes to designing and implementation of policies.

8. Respecting the culture and heritage of members of the community.

Problems of the Community Development in Nigeria

There are various problems or challenges of community development in Nigeria.

Some of them are:

1. Shortage of funds

2. Corruption

3. Infrastructure gap

4. Ignorance

5. Overconcentration of social amenities in cities

6. Imposition of alien ideas on locals

7. Foreign intervention which makes the members of the community suspicious

of the motive of the project or program

8. Lack of political will

9. Weak local government system and inter-governmental relations

10. Bureaucratic bottleneck

11. Policy discontinuity

Various Community Development Programs of Governments

The Nigerian Government initiated several policies and initiatives for community
development in Nigeria. Some of them are discussed below.

1. First National Development Plan (1960-1964): the plan was designed to boost
three major sectors in the country: agriculture, industrialization and infrastructure.
The aim is to facilitate rural and community development via agriculture and
infrastructure extension from urban to rural centers.
2. Second National Development Plan (1970-1974): this plan consists of rapid
industrialization, infrastructural development, agricultural mechanization,
educational improvement and healthcare services delivery. The objective is also to
drag development down to rural areas for sustainable national development.

3. Third National Development Plan (1976-1980): it has the same components

with that of the Second National Development Plan and the same objective too.

4. Fourth National Development Plan (1984-1986): this is aimed at modernizing

the system and allowing for an enabling environment for diversification of the
economy and wealth creation especially in rural areas.

5. Green Revolution (1979-1983): this is purposely targeted at boosting

agricultural development. A policy introduced by Alhaji Shehu Shagari to facilitate
rural development through modern and mechanized farming.

6. Back to Land (1984): a plan introduced by the Military Administration of

Muhammadu Buhari to encourage young Nigerians to go back to farming to feed the
nation.

7. Operation Feed the Nation (1985-1992): A program introduced by the

Military Administration of Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida to encourage farmers to
cultivate what will feed the nation through soft loan scheme and subsidy on
agriculture.

8. Department for Food and Rural Infrastructure: It was introduced by the

Babangida Administration specifically targeting rural areas for food production and
rural infrastructure.
9. Vision 2010: Introduced by the Abacha Military Administration, the goal is
to achieve a sustainable urban and rural economic and social development by the
year 2010.

10. National Economic and Empowerment Development Strategy: Initiated by

the Obasanjo Administration in 2003, the goal is to foster a kind of development
plan that has roots across all levels of government including state and local
governments to ensure that rural areas are encapsulated in the process for an
indigenous designed development process

11. Seven Point Agenda: Designed by the Yaradua Administration, the target is
to identify seven major areas of national development that will encompass urban and
rural areas and these include power, agriculture, industrialisation, security,
empowerment and others.

12. Transformation Agenda: It was introduced by the Jonathan Administration to

foster economic development across all classes in the Nigerian society. The major
components of the agenda consist of agricultural development, industrialization,
power and other sectors of economic development.

13. Economic Growth and Recovery Plan: It was adopted by the Buhari
Administration to revive the economy that is in comatose and to integrate other
sectors of national growth and development that will transcend down to the people
in the rural areas.
 TOPIC TEN

Interlacing Rural and Community Development

Community Developments as an Instrument for Rural Development

Community development is sometimes defined in a closer link with rural

development. However, in the real sense of it, they are two distinct terminologies
which are interdependent but closely interdependent. While rural development
entails all integrated policies and programs designed to achieve a sustainable
development with the goal of promoting political, economic, social and cultural
standard of living of the people that are dwelling in rural areas, community
development on the other hand refers to all policies and programs that are organized
by members of a community staying either in rural or smaller areas or any other
place for development.

Community development is essential for rural development because no meaningful

and sustainable rural development can be achieved until all members of the
community are carried alone and they actively participate in the process of designing
their own destiny.

Community development in most cases is distinct from rural development because

it is an approach that is internally designed and is not necessarily carried out by
government or policymakers all the time, as member as of the community can carry
out their own activities among themselves. Rural development in most cases requires
intervention from government, donors and other agencies because the projects
involved in rural development can be broader and wider in coverage than in
communities and rural development is always part of national plans and policies of
world government that must be attended to by the governments in power.
Rural Leadership and Community Development

Rural leadership is synonymously interpreted with grassroots leadership. It is a kind

of a training ground for hatching of future national and world leadership. Based on
this, it is pertinent to have a solid leadership at the rural level. If there is no sound
and quality leadership at the rural level, the policies and programs designed will not
also see the light the day. Hence, there various ways of providing a sound leadership
at the rural level including the following:

a. Mobilization by political parties for leadership recruitment

b. Representation at various elective positions especially positions that are
allocated to rural areas such as delegates, councilors and chairmanship
c. Political recruitment through appointments by the government to enable for
grassroots democratization
d. Training and integration of active members as future leaders
e. Involvement in volunteering works at community level for leadership
programs
f. Participation in politics and other projects.

Therefore, rural leadership is essential for community development because

implementation of development projects and programs requires some qualities in
leadership among which are:

a. Knowledge of the environment

b. Patience and good understanding
c. Selflessness
d. Dedication and commitment
e. Desire to achieve goals within a set target
f. Ability to attract support
 g. The power to unite community members

With a good and sound leadership at rural level, community development is

guaranteed. This is possible because no development program is achievable without
commitment and a selfless leadership.