EFFECT OF ABANDONED PROJECT AND NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The importance of national development cannot be overstated. It is a recurring issue in comprehending the history of development strategies and growth models as they relate to a certain country's history. As a result, commentators of western social scientists' postulations have highlighted in various ways that development must be viewed in the context of a certain social structure. According to Amucheazi (2024), the man and his quality of life must be at the centre of national development thinking. This reflects the idea that progress is primarily about people. As a result, development should be focused on people rather than institutions. As a result, a country is deemed developed to the extent that every aspect of its economic or national life exhibits consistent, yet progressive growth. National development is essentially the total growth of a country or countries' socioeconomic, political, and religious advancement. It is also a country's or nations' ability to increase social welfare by providing basic infrastructure such as roads, schools, hospitals, recreational facilities, and so on. However when the society is littered with with abandoned infrastructure one could doubt how the reality of national development would come to play. Evidently, there is no a state in Nigeria today that is not littered with abandoned projects that have become overgrown with weeds and equipment left behind by the contractors who previously worked on them (Spiegel Online Int 2019). Abandoned construction, civil engineering, and heavy engineering development projects such as homes, churches, schools, highways, bridges, dams, tunnels, air ports, and seaports litter Nigeria. Ogundare, (2024) noted that Nigeria has become the "world's junk-yard of abandoned projects worth billions of naira and it is completely inconceivable that Nigeria gifted with such enormous potentials in the construction business would face such magnitude of project abandonment. According to another report by Kotangora (2024), the Federal Government of Nigeria has approximately 4000 uncompleted or abandoned projects with an estimated cost of more than N 300 billion that will take 30 years to complete at the current execution capacity of government. He also claims that this issue of abandonment has been ignored for far too long, which is now having a multiplier effect on the construction industry in particular and the nation as a whole. According to Achenu (2020), construction in Nigeria accounts for over 55% of the total capital investment. Onwusonye (2024), equally stated that in Nigeria, about 6% of the total capital allocation of her annual budget is channeled for the production of public goods and services considered imperative to complement the reformation of her economy. The performance of the industry therefore, plays a major and crucial role in any government programme of economic growth and social advancement. According to Akinolu (2018), the construction industry plays a very dominant role in the economy of any nation. A healthy economy usually experience an increase in construction activities, but in a depressed economy, the incidence of project abandonment tends to be more prevalent. According to Aluko (2020) delays and cost overruns have “knock on” the effect on the construction industry and indeed in the whole economy. This applies to Nigeria where construction investments account for over 50% of the gross fixed capital formation. Akindoyeni (2020) qualitatively reasoned that some of the causes of project abandonment in Nigeria are: deaths of client, inability of client to attract fund and lack of good planning. Olabopo (2024) cited corruption as one of the reasons why over $300 billion in oil revenue has not resulted in a significant level of national development in terms of infrastructure. On the other hand, abandoned projects may be seen in many different parts of the economy, such as the construction industry, the service industry, and the manufacturing sector. It has happened that "completed" projects were commissioned despite their inability to function, their unusability, or their inability to deliver any form of service. A large amount of money is wasted economically as a consequence of major cost overruns and persistent resource mismanagement.Many unfinished projects are the result of governments, contractors, or groups abandoning them in the midst of the process. As a result, changes in the construction industry is facing a demand in excess of the ability to supply, increase the cost and prices of construction activities. This creates a repercussion for the growth of the economy as a whole. Therefore, the downturn is the economy has led to the abandonment of many projects and consequently escalation of project costs, inadequate maintenance, uncompleted and substandard projects. Having perused the effect of abandon project it is necessary the industry take heed of it implication on the nation, thus for sustainable development of our nation's economy, especially in the present dispensation, the issue of project abandonment should be properly addressed by all the stakeholders.Hence the need for this study. 1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM In recent years, the construction industry which plays a major role in the predictions of economic activity by reason of its complexity and specialized functions has been inadequately funded in comparison with budgetary allocations to other sectors of the economy. The effect of this has been the sight of abandoned projects scattered across the length and breadth of this nation. This setback has resulted in a reduced output of constructional activities and employment within the economy. Construction projects embarked upon by either private or public sectors are meant to improve the general-living conditions of Nigerians in such areas as technology, socio-economic and industrial development. According to Omoniyi (2020), delays and cost overruns have a "knock-on" impact on the whole economy and the building sector. Economic effects of project abandonment include: waste of resources, decrease in employment opportunities, shortage of revenue to the government, disappointment of the users and difficulty in attracting foreign loans and investors. If a public project is being abandoned, the economic impacts are never directly felt by the general public as they are absorbed by the government‟s reserves. However, very often there will be loss of opportunity for the public to benefit from the intended purposes of the projects (Bavani, 2019). For private non-housing projects, the consequences are mainly limited to a few project players, i.e. client, contractors, consultants, etc. Nevertheless, the affected parties may suffer devastating losses such as monetary losses, bad reputation, and even bankruptcies. Although several studies have been conducted on this topic, however in recent time, the study requires further investigation with reference to case study difference. Owing that abandon project has negative effects on national development because it involves time and resources, aside of these factors it exposes people to unemployment, reduces government revenue and also the aesthetic characteristics of the environment which is anticipated on completion of projects .This and many other reasons are why this study seeks to examine abandoned projects and National Development in Nigeria using Lagelu Local Government in Oyo State as a case study. 1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS The study will be guided by the following questions; i. What are the resources related causes of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State. ii. What are the security related causes of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State. iii. What are the managerial related causes of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State. iv. What are the effects of project abandonment on National development? v. What are the ways of controlling incessant cases of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State? 1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The main objective of this study is to critically examine abandoned project and National Development in Nigeria: A case study of Lagelu Local Government. Hence, the study will be channeled to the following specific objectives; i. Investigate the resources, security, and managerial related causes of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State. ii. Ascertain the effect of project abandonment on National development. iii. Identify ways of controlling incessant cases of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State. 1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES The statements below will be validated in the course of this study. Ho: There is no significant relationship between project abandonment and National development. H1: There is a significant relationship between project abandonment and National development. Ho: Project abandonment has no significant effect on socioeconomic development of Lagelu Local Government. H2: Project abandonment has significant effect on socioeconomic development of Lagelu Local Government. 1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY For sustainable development of our nation's economy, especially in the present dispensation, the issue of project abandonment should be properly addressed by all the stakeholders. This study will trace the obvious connections existing between abandoned projects and National Development in Nigeria. Thus this study will be of great importance to the construction industry as it will reveal the causes and effects of abandoned projects. This study will also be of significance to the government as it will reveal the effect abandoned projects has on the economy and what the government should do to reduce this menace. Finally, the findings and recommendation offered will not only add to existing literature for academic purposes, but also provide useful insights and guidelines for enhancing the quality of health and safety among employees in organisations. 1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY Broadly, this study focuses on abandoned projects and National Development in Nigeria using Lagelu Local Government in Oyo State as a case study. Specifically, this study focuses on investigating the resources, security, and managerial related causes of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State, ascertaining the effect of project abandonment on National development and identifying ways of controlling incessant cases of project abandonment in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State. Workers in the construction industry in Lagelu Local Government of Oyo State will be the enrolled participants for the survey of this study. 1.8 LIMITATIONS OF THE STDUY The study has been limited by a number of factors notable among the limitations was our people’s poor reaction to research questions and reading meaning into any attempt at any form of interview. Some of the most notable restraints encountered in the course of this study include: Capital Restrains: This research cost the researcher capital transport fares, buying of materials and browsing the internet to obtain more points. Ignorance: Most of the respondents were ignorant of giving out information demanded by the researcher, they were ignorant of the research purpose and thought it will be used for negative reasons. Evasion of privacy: Some of the questions that was asked in this study appeared to be evading the privacy of the respondents, for this reason, the researcher did not get all the cooperation he requires in order to conduct a good research. 1.9 DEFINITION OF TERMS In order to ensure proper and easy understanding of what the study is all about to some people especially those that are not in the same discipline, some unfamiliar words used in the project are defined below: Construction industry: The construction industry is an industry involved in providing residential and nonresidential facilities of a country. It is a subset of the assembly industry that connects different useful components, not to a single individual but the country at large. Abandoned project: Akhanolu et al. (2020) define project abandonment as the resultant effect of any development projects that have started at an earlier date but which the construction work for one reason or the other has stopped National Development: The term “national development” refers to the improvement of a country in all areas, including the political, economic, social, cultural, scientific, and material spheres. The capacity of a nation to enhance its citizens' standard of living is an indicator of the nation's level of development.