A CRITICAL STUDY OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS AS PURVEYORS OF DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA (1980 ? 2016)

The non-governmental organizations hereafter referred to as NGOs in Nigeria have since the 1980s evolved to play increasing roles as purveyor of development in the country. This is mainly because of the Nigerian state’s failure to provide a humane and better life for the citizenry. As the neo liberalists advocated for the contraction of the state and increasing involvement of other non-governmental institutions and organizations in the process of development in Nigeria NGOs proliferated. Although NGOs were not conceived as development alternatives to the state, their increasing role was necessary as they were conceived as being better at reaching to the grassroots and being people oriented. From the 1980s to date, NGOs have contributed in many ways to the process of development in Nigeria but for the fact that the country’s developmental challenges have continued to increase, the role of the organizations seems to be undermined. Many accuse NGOs for being corrupt and self-centered and claim that they have not lived above board. Against this backdrop, this paper is a critical study of NGOs as purveyors of development in Nigeria. To achieve its aim, the paper relies on critical discourse technique of qualitative analysis as it looks at the roles the NGOs need to play in the light of Nigeria’s increasing development challenges especially the rehabilitation of IDPs in north east Nigeria. It is the opinion of the paper that NGOs should play active and transparent roles in this evolving project in order to be regarded as a true purveyor of development in Nigeria.