COMMUNITY BASED ORGANISATIONS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Essentially speaking, rural development has been a recurring topic of discourse as a road to national development and economic advancement. It is well known that rural areas in Nigeria lack basic amenities such as piped water, good road networks, schools, health facilities, and markets, to name a few, resulting in rural areas being severely undeveloped. As a result, there is a significant difference in development levels between urban and rural areas, owing to political actors' neglect of rural areas; consequently, the significance of community-based organizations (CBOs) as a viable option for rural development. The essence of this study is to objectively assess the role of community-based organizations (CBOs) in Nigerian rural development. The study is based on  collaborative governance theory, explanatory research design, and secondary data inquiry as its research methods. The study finds that CBOs' efforts and collaborations with the government, on occasions, play a significant role in rural development. The study concludes and suggests that community-based organizations (CBOs) are vital but underappreciated actors in rural development which should be encouraged and supported to do more by the government and donor agencies.