Productivity measurement and growth in Nigeria: challenges and prospects

Productivity (growth) measurements (describing the assessment of an economy’s rate of change in the ratio of a volume measure of output to a volume measure of input use) and related analysis are regular undertakings by staff of economic development of most nations and development institutions such as the OECD. Although they strive to accomplish objectives related to studying efficiency or the achievement of maximum output physically achievable under the use of current technology and given inputs, accounting for the contribution of real costs savings; introduction of benchmarks for production processes and to highlight living standards obtaining at points in time, its emphasis has been at the expense of examination of issues related to society (institutions), history, innovation and productivity change, which are concerned with promoting growth beyond mere productivity accounting. This paper has attempted to address all these issues as they pertain to Nigeria’s rather stagnant or declining economy. This slight modification was prompted by changes from philosophers concerned with the wider area of productivity measurement and change. The literature agrees that productivity measurement (growth accounting) only “identified the significance of different proximate sources of growth” but fails to employ institutional, historical case studies to investigate the underlying causes of the growth, innovation and productivity change. Details of deficiencies related to the foregoing issues are examined and policy recommendations drafted and presented to assist practitioners, policy and decision makers and other stakeholders.productivity, change, improvement, growth, labour, corruption.

Sub-national regional development and degree-awarding tertiary educational institutions in Nigeria: descriptive, geo-demographic and geo-spatial analyses

Public and private investments in educational institutions as a means of catalysing economic growth has been recognized a veritable strategy for developing human capital, increasing productivity and competitiveness at various regional levels. Nigeria’s multiplicity of cultural groups whose political sensitivity to (in)equality in the sharing of nationally pooled resources has been a source of conflicts including the 1967-70 civil war, presents an ideal scenario for understanding the extent of balance or otherwise of tertiary educational opportunities across the national landscape. This has not been sufficiently addressed in the academic literature. This article reports findings of a study of the provision of degree-awarding tertiary educational institutions (TEIs) by governments and private entities in Nigeria’s sub-national regions. Geo-demographic-spatial and description analyses were used to analyze secondary data. We found among others that: the numbers of TEIs provided in the sub-national regions (geo-political zones and their constituent states) have not been determined by the population size of the sub-national regions (state/territory); highest concentration/localisation of TEIs were in Nigeria’s SouthWest geo-political zone. It is argued that the full government financing of education implemented in the former (South) Western Region about half a century ago (since the 1950s) laid the foundation for creating critically needed human capital mass that has continued to regenerate in multi-dimensional strategies for establishing more TEIs thereby promoting regional development in the present South-West Region thereby contrasting with Nigeria’s other geo-political regions

Self-regulated learning skill as a predictor of mathematics achievement: a focus on ability levels

This paper investigated self-regulated learning skills as a predictor of students’ achievement in mathematics based on ability level. The study is prediction-design research of correlational type. The subjects were 882 SSII students from the secondary schools in Owerri Education Zone of Imo State. The researchers adopted the multi-stage but simple random sampling technique to draw the sample. Two instruments were used to collect data for this study. They are the Self-regulated Learning Questionnaire (SRLQ) and Mathematics Achievement Proforma. The validity of the instruments was ensured through experts’ suggestions and guidance. Single-administration reliability and Cronbach Alpha ensured the reliability of SRLQ (0.89). The data collected were analyzed using regression analysis and coefficient of determination at 0.05 alpha level with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. The results of the study revealed that self-regulated learning skill predicts 6.0% and 4.3% respectively to the variance observed in high and low achieving students in mathematics. This prediction is significant as attested to by the regression analysis carried out (p < 0.05). Therefore, secondary school students should regulate their learning to increase their mathematics achievement

Incentive Structure and Work Attitude among Junior Staff in Cross River State Civil Service

This study investigates whether incentive structure plays a significant role in the work attitude of junior civil servants in Nigeria. Five different incentive items were tested by data collected. These include monetary, job security, promotion, good work environment, and social/official recognition. These five sub-variables were ranked in their order of importance. Frequency distribution, descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient and T-test statistical techniques were used to analyze data obtained. It was found that junior civil servants considered monetary incentives highest on their ranking, and that incentive structure as a whole significantly affected work attitude among junior staff in the Civil Service

The Nature and Weighting of Major Determinants of Women Participation in Policy Process in Nigeria: Evidence from Akwa Ibom State

This study investigates the factors responsible for the very low number of women participating in policy process in Akwa-Ibom, Nigeria. Stratified random sampling was used in this study for the purpose of separating the respondents into educated (HND/B.Sc. and above) and less educated. Responses from educated respondents were used in this study. Data were collected by distributing and retrieving 900 questionnaires across the three senatorial districts of the state (300 in each senatorial district). The various factors tested were economic, cultural, physical, mental, psychological, religion and ideology. Frequency distribution statistics is used to analyze data obtained. It was found that 66% of respondents considered economic factor as most responsible for the low number of women participating in policy processes in Akwa-Ibom State, Nigeria

Estimation of potential chronic daily intake of heavy metal through consumption of potable water in South-south Nigeria

Industrialization and urbanization has increase the emission of pollutant into the environment; as such sensitive media subject to pollution (water, soil and air) has been infringed upon. Heavy metal is a potential pollutants found in Nigeria water sources. This study assessed the chronic daily intake (CDI) of heavy metal from potable water sources (surface and ground water) in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Secondary data (literatures) were used for the study. The study found the concentration of heavy metals under study to be above the permissible limit recommended by Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON), and the World Health Organization (WHO). The CDI of heavy metal for both children and adults were high ranging from 0.57 to 1436.33 μg/kg·day (iron), 0.00 to 323.33 μg/kg·day (zinc), 0.00 to 37.14 μg/kg·day (cadmium), 0.00 to 29.67 μg/kg·day (chromium), 0.00 to 116.67 μg/kg·day (lead), 0.00 to 123.33 μg/kg·day (copper), 0.00 to 21.33 μg/kg·day (nickel) and 0.00 to 78.0 μg/kg·day (manganese). The CDI value indicates that the consumption of these water sources without treatment could cause disease conditions. Hence, the water requires treatment prior consumption

An extraordinary outburst in the massive protostellar system NGC 6334I-MM1 : quadrupling of the millimeter continuum

Based on sub-arcsecond Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and Submillimeter Array (SMA) 1.3 mm continuum images of the massive protocluster NGC 6334I obtained in 2015 and 2008, we find that the dust emission from MM1 has increased by a factor of 4.0 ± 0.3 during the intervening years, and undergone a significant change in morphology. The continuum emission from the other cluster members (MM2, MM4, and the UCH ii region MM3 = NGC 6334F) has remained constant. Long-term single-dish maser monitoring at HartRAO finds that multiple maser species toward NGC 6334I flared beginning in early 2015, a few months before our ALMA observation, and some persist in that state. New ALMA images obtained in 2016 July–August at 1.1 and 0.87 mm confirm the changes with respect to SMA 0.87 mm images from 2008, and indicate that the (sub)millimeter flaring has continued for at least a year. The excess continuum emission, centered on the hypercompact H ii region MM1B, is extended and elongated (1″6 × 1″0 ≈ 2100 × 1300 au) with multiple peaks, suggestive of general heating of the surrounding subcomponents of MM1, some of which may trace clumps in a fragmented disk rather than separate protostars. In either case, these remarkable increases in maser and dust emission provide direct observational evidence of a sudden accretion event in the growth of a massive protostar yielding a sustained luminosity surge by a factor of 70 ± 20, analogous to the largest events in simulations by Meyer et al. This target provides an excellent opportunity to assess the impact of such a rare event on a protocluster over many years.PostprintPeer reviewe

The extraordinary outburst in the massive protostellar system NGC6334I-MM1 : emergence of strong 6.7 GHz methanol masers

C. J. Cyganowski acknowledges support from the STFC (grant number ST/M001296/1).We report the first sub-arcsecond VLA imaging of 6 GHz continuum, methanol maser, and excited-state hydroxyl maser emission toward the massive protostellar cluster NGC6334I following the recent 2015 outburst in (sub)millimeter continuum toward MM1, the strongest (sub)millimeter source in the protocluster. In addition to detections toward the previously known 6.7 GHz Class II methanol maser sites in the hot core MM2 and the UCHII region MM3 (NGC6334F), we find new maser features toward several components of MM1, along with weaker features ∼1” north, west, and southwest of MM1, and toward the non-thermal radio continuum source CM2. None of these areas have heretofore exhibited Class II methanol maser emission in three decades of observations. The strongest MM1 masers trace a dust cavity, while no masers are seen toward the strongest dust sources MM1A, 1B and 1D. The locations of the masers are consistent with a combination of increased radiative pumping due to elevated dust grain temperature following the outburst, the presence of infrared photon propagation cavities, and the presence of high methanol column densities as indicated by ALMA images of thermal transitions. The non-thermal radio emission source CM2 (2” north of MM1) also exhibits new maser emission from the excited 6.035 and 6.030 GHz OH lines. Using the Zeeman effect, we measure a line-of-sight magnetic field of +0.5 to +3.7 mG toward CM2. In agreement with previous studies, we also detect numerous methanol and excited OH maser spots toward the UCHII region MM3, with predominantly negative line-of-sight magnetic field strengths of -2 to -5 mG and an intriguing south-north field reversal.PostprintPeer reviewe