STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVEMENT OF REVENUE GENERATION IN A DEPRESSED ECONOMY

ATTENTION:

BEFORE YOU READ THE ABSTRACT OR CHAPTER ONE OF THE PROJECT TOPIC BELOW, PLEASE READ THE INFORMATION BELOW.THANK YOU!

INFORMATION:

YOU CAN GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT OF THE TOPIC BELOW. THE FULL PROJECT COSTS N5,000 ONLY. THE FULL INFORMATION ON HOW TO PAY AND GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT IS AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE. OR YOU CAN CALL: 08068231953, 08168759420

WHATSAPP US ON  08137701720

STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVEMENT OF REVENUE GENERATION IN A DEPRESSED ECONOMY

Abstract

Local governments in Nigeria are faced with many difficulties in generating adequate finance to perform their constitutional responsibilities; such problems are a cog in the wheel to the smooth running of local government administration. These challenges include dishonesty on the part of officer collecting the revenues, such as cases of printing receipts by the officers. This development has hampered the operations of Njikoka local government area of Anambra state. This study therefore examines problems and prospects of revenue generation in Nigerian local government system, with focus on Njikoka local government area of Anambra state. The study is a qualitative descriptive analysis, while data collection was effected through the secondary sources. Systems theory served as theoretical framework of analysis. The findings reveal that despite external and internal sources of revenue to Njikoka local government, corruption and poor governance, public cynicism, lack of qualified revenue collectors and lack of financial autonomy undermine revenue collection. It also demonstrates enlightenment and motivation of revenue collectors are measures to enhance the prospects of revenue collection in the local government. It therefore recommends honest and credible leadership as a panacea for revenue shortfalls in Njikoka local government.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title page … …     …..     ….     ….     ….     ….     ….     …     …      …      i Approval page … … …..    ….    ….    ….    ….     ….     …     …     …     ii Dedication … …    …..   ….   ….   ….   ….   ….   …    …    …    iii Acknowledgement … …     …..     ….      ….      ….      ….      ….      …       …       iv

CHAPTER TWO: Literature Review

• he Concept of Local Government… …    …..      ….       ….       ….       ….       8

• ole of Local Governments …        …..      ….       ….       ….       ….       ….       20

• ps in Literature     …..      ….       ….       ….       ….       ….       …        …        43

CHAPTER THREE: Methodology

3.1       Theoretical Framework … …          …..      ….       ….       ….       ….       ….       44

CHAPTER FOUR: Background and Sources of Revenue in Njikoka Local Government

• istorical Development of Njikoka Local Government …            …        …..      48

• rganizational Structure of Njikoka Local Government Administration …        51

CHAPTER FIVE: Problems and Prospects of Revenue Generation in Njikoka Local Government

• ood Governances… …      …..      ….       ….       ….       ….       ….       …        80

• ruitment of Trained Revenue Collection Personnel      …        …       …..      83

1. dequate Enlightenment of the General Public       … …              …..      ….       84

• otivation of Revenue Collectors    …       …        …..      ….       ….       …         85

CHAPTER SIX: Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations

LISTS OF TABLES

Table 3:          Table Tenement Rates in Njikoka in LGA  …       …        ….       ….       64

Background of the Study

Chapter one Introduction

… as government is the means by which the common problems and needs of a community constituting a country are economically catered  for, so  also local  community revolves jointly those common problems and needs, which could have been difficulty to solve individually, (Olaoye et al, 2009:12)

Nigeria as a sovereign nation operates a federal system of government, that is, the federal government, state government and the local government councils. Onwo (1992) Observed that each level of the three tiers of government derive its powers not from the magnanimity of the central government but from the constitution; each level of government has defined responsibilities assigned to it by the constitution. The implication of this is that the three segments of governments are mutually interrelated in a unified effort to make life worth – while for the masses.

Local governments operate at the grassroots and are expected to provide services to their stakeholders. In a federal system like Nigeria, local governments are close to the people and hence could effectively alter socioeconomic and political conditions within their jurisdictions. Apart from providing and maintaining basic infrastructures, local governments can complement the economic activities of other levels of government. This of course depends on the availability and proper utilization of funds.

Revenue generation is therefore an important issue for Local Government Councils. It is through this activity that the Councils source the finance for funding their operations, thus to a large extent, determining the quantity and quality of services provided to the generality of people within their domain. These reasons, coupled with the fact that Local Governments are engines of growth and development, make imperative the need for Local Governments to map out strategies for improved revenue generation, emphasising especially the internal sources which are more flexible, and could be in the total control of the Local Governments.

Local governments in Nigeria are created to bring governance closer to the people at the grass-root level and promote political participation. It is the closest tier of government to the people in Nigeria, yet the resident population in it is denied the benefits of its existence. This is evident in the environmental state, deteriorating public school buildings, poor market facilities and lack of health centers as well as access roads and drainages. According to Olusola (2011), the failure of the Local governments in the area of service delivery has made the citizens to lose trust in government as an institution. In some areas, council officials are better known for the harassment of citizens than service delivery (Shar, 2007). This is basically due to the difficult in generating revenue for its operations, as  well as fulfilling its constitutional responsibilities. As a result of this development, many Nigerians crave for change in the local government system as presently constituted in order not only to bring it in conformity with present day realities but also to make it live up to the

expectations of the people who have been yearning for development and a sense of belonging.

In order to fulfill these important constitutional responsibilities, local governments require huge sums of money, which is usually difficult to generate. The primary source of local government sustenance is from Federal Allocation. It is the livewire of a local government. Sections 7 and 8 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria provide for the existence of an autonomous and democratic local government. It also outlined the sources of local government revenue to include rates, statutory allocations, fines, earnings and profits, fees and charges, grants, loans and other miscellaneous sources. The extent to which a local government can go in accomplishing its goal largely depends on its revenue strength. The capacity of local government to generate revenue internally is one very crucial consideration for the creation of a local council. Despite these considerations, the local governments still encounter mirage of difficulties in generating revenue.

Local government administrations in the country experienced fundamental changes in 1976. The 1976 local government reform created for the first time, a single-tier structure of local government in place of the different structure in the various states. The 1976 reform is of great importance because it hinges on restructuring of the financial system of local governments in Nigeria. The reforms instituted statutory  allocation of revenue  from the  federation accounts with the intention of giving local government fixed proportions of both the federation account

and states revenue. This allocation to local government became mandatory and was entrenched in the recommendations of the Aboyade Revenue Commissions of 1977. The 1979 constitution empowered the national Assembly to determine what proportion of the federation account and revenue from a state to allocate its local governments.

Njikoka local government area of Anambra state is one of these councils created for the development of the local communities and improvement in the living condition of its people. It is one of the twenty-one (21) local government areas in Anambra state and 774 in Nigeria. It is one of the oldest local government councils in Anambra state, having evolved from Njikoka County in 1930 to to Njikoka local government in 1976. Its headquarters is situated in Abagana. According to the 2006 population and housing Census, Njikoka has a population of 750,327 and a landmass of 225 kilometers. The problem of inadequate funding have led Njikoka local government into a vicious circle of poverty, resulting to inadequate functions and powers, which ultimately lead to in the employment of low skilled and poorly paid staff.

Statement of the Problem

The essence of reforming local government system in Nigeria is to bring about stable increases in income, productivity, diversification of its economy and general quality of lives in the rural areas. But the ability of the local governments in Nigeria  to  accomplish  these  tasks  depends  on  their  financial  endowments.

Therefore, finance is the bedrock of any organization, including the local government system. It is generally agreed that functionality of local government, the level at which services are rendered, and the quality of services are strongly tied to the financial resources available to it.

Local governments in Nigeria are faced with many difficulties in sourcing adequate revenue; such problems are cogwheel to the smooth running of the local government system. With the local government reform of 1976, local governments in Nigeria became recognized as the third tier of government, vested with the statutory powers to discharge the duties and responsibilities of government. To achieve this, no doubt, efficient and effective revenue generation and management becomes germane. The revenue issues, particularly the problem of generation are well documented.

However, there have been a tendency, conscious or unconsciously, to over generalize the problems of local governments. Though the empirical fact from extant literature revealed the problems of some local governments in the country, the experience of Njikoka local government seems to have been ignored in that respect. This, therefore, necessitates a study of this nature to investigate if Njikoka local government is faced with enormous abnormalities occasioned by revenue collectors, issues of financial autonomy, poor governance and unwillingness by higher levels of government to release resources to the local government in revenue generation. Based on the above recognized problems in the extant literature, the study raised the following questions to fill the gap in the literature:

1. Has  the  absence  of  well  trained  revenue  collectors  constitute  revenue generation problem in Njikoka LGA?
   1. Does lack of transparency by revenue collectors impede revenue generation in Njikoka local government?
   1. Has  poor  governance  and  lack  of  financial  autonomy  contributed  to  the problems of revenue generation in Njikoka LGA?

Objectives of the Study

The broad objective of the study is to determine the problems and prospects of revenue generation in Nigerian local government system, with focus on Njikoka local government area of Anambra state between 1999 and 2012. However, the specific objectives are:

1. To determine if the absence of well trained revenue collectors constitute revenue generation problem in Njikoka LGA;
   1. To ascertain if lack of transparency by revenue collectors impede revenue generation in Njikoka local government;
   1. To examine how poor governance and lack of financial autonomy contributes to the problems of revenue generation in Njikoka LGA.

Significance of the Study

The study has theoretical and practical significance. Theoretically, it will determine the problems and prospects of revenue generation in Nigerian local government system, particularly in Njikoka local government between 1999 and

2012. This is more so considering the debate the issue of local government revenue has generated since the return of democracy to Nigeria in 1999. It will also contribute to the noble goal of making local governments in Nigeria more effective. More so, this study is expected to add to the body of literature on local government and stipulate further research in this direction. The constant need to improve governance in Nigeria, particularly the local governments, makes the contributions of this work invaluable as reference for further research in local governments  in Nigeria.

Practically, the findings of this research will assist policy makers and local government administrators in making local governments in Nigeria more financially viable and efficient in service delivery. It will also go a long way in making local governments in the country more viable, efficient, effective and self-reliant as the finding will bring to the fore issues that have undermined the revenue generation mechanisms of the local government system. It will therefore serve as a guide to local government administrators.

HOW TO RECEIVE PROJECT MATERIAL(S)

After paying the appropriate amount (#5,000) into our bank Account below, send the following information to

08068231953 or 08168759420

(1)    Your project topics

(2)     Email Address

(3)     Payment Name

(4)    Teller Number

We will send your material(s) after we receive bank alert

BANK ACCOUNTS

Account Name: AMUTAH DANIEL CHUKWUDI

Account Number: 0046579864

Bank: GTBank.

OR

Account Name: AMUTAH DANIEL CHUKWUDI

Account Number: 3139283609

Bank: FIRST BANK

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL:

08068231953 or 08168759420

AFFILIATE LINKS:

myeasyproject.com.ng

easyprojectmaterials.com

easyprojectmaterials.net.ng

easyprojectsmaterials.net.ng

easyprojectsmaterial.net.ng

easyprojectmaterial.net.ng

projectmaterials.com.ng

googleprojectsng.blogspot.com

myprojectsng.blogspot.com.ng