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An afrocentric critique of the discourse of good governance and its limitations as a means of addressing development challenges in Nigeria

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dc.contributor.advisor Mazibuko, S.G.
dc.contributor.author Adejumo-Ayibiowu, Oluwakemi Damola
dc.date.accessioned 2018-11-05T11:37:30Z
dc.date.available 2018-11-05T11:37:30Z
dc.date.issued 2018-09-11
dc.identifier.citation Adejumo-Ayibiowu, Oluwakemi Damola (2018) An afrocentric critique of the discourse of good governance and its limitations as a means of addressing development challenges in Nigeria, University of South Africa, Pretoria, <http://hdl.handle.net/10500/24992>
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/10500/24992
dc.description.abstract The current study is an African-centred critique of the idea of ‘good governance’; which since the 1990s, has been a prescription of the international development institutions for all development challenges facing developing countries. Despite almost two decades of implementation of good governance reforms in Nigeria, poverty, corruption and underdevelopment persist. The analysis showed that the limited involvement of local people in the design of donor-sponsored good governance reforms mainly produced a universal, donor-conceptualized good governance agenda, which did not fully capture local issues. Given this, the main objective of the current study was to develop a cultural, context-specific governance model that shares local citizens’ understanding of governance, as well as, addresses challenges of governance at local levels in Nigeria. However, given the diversity of cultures in Nigeria and the uniqueness of each of them, this study only focused on Southwest Nigeria. Afrocentricity is the theoretical framework for this study. Mainstream development theories have mainly guided the development efforts of African countries but these theories are based on the experience of the European countries and primarily seek their interests. Given the failure of Eurocentric development theories in Nigeria, this study deemed it fit to adopt a theoretical framework that is based on African experience and that seeks African interests. Afrocentricity is the only theory in which the centrality of African interests, principles, and perceptions predominate (Pellebon 2007: 174). In terms of methodology, this study adopted the case study design. The study also used both the qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection. But the study was largely qualitative because it relied on participants’ interpretations. The inclusion of quantitative data was for purposes of expanding and complementing the interpretive information. The study is significant because the findings provide agency to indigenous people in Nigeria by the voicing their perception of governance. The study also identified context-specific issues affecting governance in Nigeria, which were not captured in the donor’s universal good governance agenda. The study proposed how the principles that have enabled the effectiveness of traditional governance systems could be incorporated into formal governance to achieve better government performance. Most importantly, this study offers context-specific and people-centred recommendations to address Nigeria’s governance and development challenges. This study’s Afrocentric approach to the understanding of good governance is an epistemological rupture against the Eurocentric idea of good governance. en
dc.format.extent 1 online resource (xii, 376 : illustrations, some color) en
dc.language.iso en en
dc.subject Afrocentricity en
dc.subject Eurocentrism en
dc.subject Good governance en
dc.subject Development en
dc.subject Poverty en
dc.subject Decoloniality en
dc.subject Political institutions en
dc.subject Colonialism en
dc.subject Culture en
dc.subject Indigenous knowledge en
dc.subject Ethnicity en
dc.subject.ddc 305.896073
dc.subject.lcsh Afrocentrism -- Nigeria en
dc.subject.lcsh Corporate governance -- Nigeria en
dc.subject.lcsh Africa -- Civilization en
dc.subject.lcsh Eurocentrism -- Nigeria en
dc.title An afrocentric critique of the discourse of good governance and its limitations as a means of addressing development challenges in Nigeria en
dc.type Thesis en
dc.description.department Development Studies en
dc.description.degree PhD (Philosophy)


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