Economic liberalization and state sovereignty: implications for family welfare services in Nigeria

Adunola Adepoju, University of Lagos
Mercy Onwuama, University of Lagos

Economic liberalization has created serious distortions, thereby marginalizing and exposing vulnerable groups, especially women, children and elderly to poverty and deprivation. Family welfare services have been curtailed and ability of families to provide basic social, reproductive and economic services to its members severely compromised. Government’s cost-recovery strategies have inadvertently led to deterioration in access to basic welfare services – health, education, housing and sanitation in Nigeria. This study examines correlates of economic liberalization in relation to state sovereignty and neo-liberal economic management and its risks to poverty and family welfare in Nigeria. Ex-post facto research design was used to identify pre- and post-economic restructuring in the trend of family welfare services provisioning in Nigeria. The results point to the need for a reorientation of policy in favour of people-centred intervention measures to reduce poverty and enhance family welfare programmes and its human development indicators in the country.