THE NATURE OF FOREIGN AID AND ITS IMPACT ON NIGERIA’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Abstract: This study is an investigative inquiry into the nature of foreign aid and its impact on Nigeria’s economic development. The role of foreign aid in the growth process of developing countries has been an issue of intense debate. Foreign aid is an important issue given its implications for poverty reduction in developing countries. As the government of Nigeria explores the avenues for foreign aid assistance from developed countries, bilateral and multilateral international organizations to develop the economy by providing infrastructures and other developmental projects, it is important to evaluate the extent to which growth could be propelled by filling the savings and foreign exchange gaps in Nigeria. In light of the foregoing, this study ascertained what existing research on Nigeria aid dependency suggest regarding their impact on the Nigerian economy, it also discussed Nigeria’s reasons for the current dependency on foreign aid based on existing research. To make sense out of the subject matter, this research adopted the descriptive method of data analysis because descriptive statistics enables us to present the data in a more meaningful way, which allows simpler interpretation of the data. The study is wholly anchored on the Dependency Theory as compared to the Debt Overhang Theory to give the study a firm framework of comprehensiveness. After critical analysis of the subject matter, the research arrived at the following conclusion; Nigeria has continued to benefit from all sorts of foreign assistance and in fact still collect at least as much as the amount collected in the early 1980s, yet socio-economic development has remained dismal because of the spate of corrupt practices among political leaders.