FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

The study employs yearly data from 1980 to 2021 to analyze the Balance of Payments in Nigeria. Its primary objective is to explore the long-term determinants of Nigeria's Balance of Payments. The investigation employs the Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model (ARDL). The long-run ARDL regression findings indicate a negative exchange rate effect, while the short-run results show a positive value. Furthermore, the coefficients for FDI, GDP growth, interest rates, and crude oil prices are all positive and statistically significant. The research suggests a compelling case for government intervention to stimulate economic productivity. To foster economic growth, capital investment and expenditure are crucial. The government should entice foreign investment by providing incentives to potential foreign investors. Additionally, the government should enhance security and establish a sense of belonging in the Niger Delta to promote peace and ease of operations in the oil industry

This study critically examines gender politics and women's participation in Nigerian politics, focusing on the 2020
governorship election in Edo state. Through four key research objectives, the project aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing women in Nigerian politics. Firstly, it analyzes historical trends in women's political participation, spanning from pre-colonial eras to the present day. Secondly, it explores the socio- cultural, economic, and political barriers that inhibit women's empowerment in Nigeria, including patriarchal norms and institutional biases. Thirdly, the study evaluates existing strategies and policies aimed at promoting women's political participation, such as affirmative action and gender quotas. Finally, based on these analyses, the project proposes recommendations to enhance women's political empowerment in Nigeria, encompassing legislative reforms, institutional changes, and grassroots mobilization efforts. Through this research, the study contributes to the scholarly discourse on gender politics and women's
empowerment in Nigeria, offering insights to inform policy-making and advocacy initiatives toward achieving gender equality in the political sphere. This research utilizes a quantitative data collection method. A well-structured questionnaire was used to obtain information from 164 respondents. Findings revealed that women's participation is still at a lower level during the 2020 governorship election in Edo State. The results highlight the persistent gender disparities in political representation and engagement, underscoring the need for targeted interventions to promote gender equality and increase women's political participation. The findings contribute to the ongoing discourse on gender and politics in Nigeria, emphasizing the importance of addressing the systemic barriers that hinder women's full participation in the political sphere.

This study focuses on the study of the roles of social welfare services on broken homes Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State. The idea of this investigation is to expose the form of social welfare services in the Local Government, the utilization of the available services and the awareness of the people on the available social welfare service in the Local Government. A total of one hundred (150) in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State were used for the study. Questionnaires was the instrument used to collect data, the research instrument used for collecting the data were subjected to both reliability and validity test before it was administered to the residents. A self-completion questionnaire was used as instrument for data collection. Data collected were analyzed using tables, pie and bar charts. From the findings of the study, it was discovered that when social welfare services is improved that is when it better meet the needs of the community and its members and that improved social welfare service can help people from broken home with support and access to necessary resources both financially and otherwise as it can influence the economic stability of individuals and families living in broken homes. Though many people are aware of social welfare services in Oredo Local Government Area, Edo State, they often encounter challenges while utilizing these services.

Divorce, defined as the legal dissolution of marriage, represents the formal termination of a marital union, marking its official end just as a wedding ceremony signifies its beginning. The causes of divorce are multifaceted and include factors such as abuse, financial mismanagement, infidelity, infertility, poor communication, early marriage, prolonged hardship, substance abuse, external family influence, and other marital conflicts. As a significant life crisis, divorce has increasingly attracted global attention due to its psychological, social, and economic implications for couples, their children, and society at large. Available literature indicates that marriage breakdown is on the rise worldwide. Statistics from developed countries reveal steady increases in divorce rates over the past decades, with notable figures recorded in the United States, Australia, and Sweden. Although accurate statistical data in Nigeria remain limited due to the tendency to handle divorce matters privately outside formal legal systems, existing studies and societal observations suggest a growing incidence of marital dissolution. Factors contributing to this increase in Nigeria include economic pressures, changing family structures, post-war societal shifts, women’s increasing independence, and broader processes of social liberalization. Overall, divorce continues to pose significant emotional and social challenges, highlighting the need for deeper understanding and intervention strategies.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is often seen as a driver of economic development, bringing capital, technology, and expertise to various sectors, including healthcare. However, its impact on health expenditure in Nigeria remains unclear. This study examines the relationship between FDI and health expenditure in Nigeria using secondary time-series data from 1990 to 2023, sourced from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).The dependency theory forms the theoretical framework of the study. The Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and the Fully Modified Ordinary Least Square regression method was
employed to assess whether FDI significantly influences health expenditure while accounting for economic growth and government expenditure. The findings reveal that while FDI shows a positive relationship with health expenditure, its impact is statistically insignificant. In contrast, economic growth significantly contributes to increased health spending, highlighting its crucial role in healthcare financing. Interestingly, government expenditure on health appears to have a negative effect, raising concerns about inefficiencies in public healthcare investment. Additionally, due to data limitations, the study could not fully assess FDI’s impact on healthcare accessibility, quality, and private sector investment, leaving room for further investigation.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is often seen as a driver of economic development, bringing capital, technology, and expertise to various sectors, including healthcare. However, its impact on health expenditure in Nigeria remains unclear. This study examines the relationship between FDI and health expenditure in Nigeria using secondary time-series data from 1990 to 2023, sourced from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).The dependency theory forms the theoretical framework of the study. The Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and the Fully Modified Ordinary Least Square regression method was employed to assess whether FDI significantly influences health expenditure while accounting for economic growth and government expenditure. The findings reveal that while FDI shows a positive relationship with health expenditure, its impact is statistically insignificant. In contrast, economic growth significantly contributes to increased health spending, highlighting its crucial role in healthcare financing. Interestingly, government expenditure on health appears to have a negative effect, raising concerns about inefficiencies in public healthcare investment. Additionally, due to data limitations, the study could not fully assess FDI’s impact on healthcare accessibility, quality, and private sector investment, leaving room for further investigation

The 1983 coup d’état that ousted the Shehu Shagari government out of power gave to justify their action with the poor health condition of across the country. The master minders claimed that the country’s hospitals had become “mere consulting clinics. “In the speech announcing the overthrow of the government, Sani Abacha (then a brigadier- general) lamented, “Health services are in (a) shambles as our hospitals are reduced to mere consulting clinics without drugs, water and equipment.” Depressingly, 40 years after, the last 24 years under civilian rule, not much improvement has been witnessed in the sector. (Source Punch Newspaper 14 September, 2021. page 14). Things have deteriorated in the sector so much that even the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), alongside the political elite, does not trust the country’s hospitals enough for their medical needs. Instead, have resorts to medical tourism in the United Kingdom at huge public huge expense. The British Broadcasting Corporation says Nigeria spends about $1 billion annually on medical tourism, particularly to India. This poor health
infrastructure no doubt is the basic reason for the high-level exit of skilled medical workers from the county. The study examined the health implications of globalization of skilled Medical Health workers with evidence from post Covid -19 Brain Drains in Edo
State Nigeria. It was discovered that globalization has produced significant shifts everywhere. Healthcare is undergoing dramatic globalization. This research is about the high level of brain drain as experience in the post covid -19 in Edo State Nigeria. With
the mass exodus of doctors fleeing an increasingly hostile work and economic environment, if care is not taken, there will be nobody to consult at the decayed “clinics” again. Health is not valued until sickness comes. The study revealed that despite the risks
of frontline workers during the pandemic –migration to high income countries remain attractive to medical skilled and health workers from Edo State due to better working conditions including remuneration and workload. The implications is that if not managed well, increased demand for health workers will leave considerable gaps in Edo already weak health system. (Nation Newspaper on Apr 25, 2022). It is recommended that government should intensify effort in the proper funding and encouragement of health workers in Nigeria in order to arrest the continuous increase of brain drain in Edo State and in Nigeria.

he study employs yearly data from 1980 to 2021 to analyze the Balance of Payments in Nigeria. Its primary objective is to explore the long-term determinants of Nigeria's Balance of Payments. The investigation employs the Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model (ARDL). The long-run ARDL regression findings indicate a negative exchange rate effect, while the short-run results show a positive value. Furthermore, the coefficients for FDI, GDP growth, interest rates, and crude oil prices are all positive and statistically significant. The research suggests a compelling case for government intervention to stimulate economic productivity. To foster economic growth, capital investment and expenditure are crucial. The government should entice foreign investment by providing incentives to potential foreign investors. Additionally, the government should enhance security and establish a sense of belonging in the Niger Delta to promote peace and ease of operations in the oil industry.

This paper examines the impact of value added tax and budget deficit on economic performance in Nigeria. The main objective of this study is to examine the interrelationship among value added tax, budget deficit and economic performance proxied as gross domestic product (GDP) in Nigeria during the period under study. The study utilized aggregate annual data from 1980 to 2018. The data was analyzed with the co-integration/ VECM method. The major findings are: the test for stationary using Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) which showed that all the variables except budget deficit were not stationary in levels but were all stationary in first difference. The Johansen-Juselius co-integration techniques were employed in testing for long run equilibrium relationship among the variables and the results indicated that co-integrating relationship was found among the variables. The coefficient of determination reveals that about 88% of the systematic variation in the dependent variable (GDP) is explained by the five independent variables which are value added tax, budget deficit, exchange rate, consumer price index and real interest rate. Also, the vector error correction model (VECM) shows that about 22% of the discrepancy between the actual and the long run or equilibrium value in the real gross domestic product is corrected or eliminated each year. Furthermore, the result revealed that value added tax, budget deficit, and exchange rate has positive and insignificant effect on GDP in Nigeria, while consumer price index has positive and significant impact on GDP in Nigeria based on the magnitude and the level of significance of the coefficient and p-value. The result also reveals that there is long run relationship between value added tax, budget deficit and gross domestic product as evidenced by the VECM. The paper concluded that Government and policy makers should carefully study the present state of the economy and properly estimate the effects of various alternative policy measures of financing fiscal deficits. And also government should supervise the collection of VAT revenue to ensure orderly, fair and equitable dealings in the collection of VAT revenue and to forestall illegal deals by privilege insiders so as to raise the revenue as
effectively and efficiently as possible.

In recent years, there has been an increasing recognition of the pivotal role that women play in driving sustainable development at the grassroot level. Empowering women not only enhances their socioeconomic status but also fosters community development. However, despite numerous empowerment initiatives, women in Oredo local government area, Benin city, continue to face multifaceted challenges that hinder their full participation in development process. This study investigated women empowerment and grassroots development in Nigeria: A case study of Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State. The study adopted descriptive research survey design in building up this project work. The sample size was made up of 100 respondents. The data collected was analyzed using frequency count and simple percentage. The study revealed that some of the ways to improve women empowerment to enhance their contribution to grassroots development include access to education, economic empowerment, political participation, legal reforms and protection and access to microfinance and credit facilities. It was concluded that there is a significant impact of women empowerment on grassroots development in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State. The study recommends among others that that the government design and implement targeted capacity-building programmes focusing on providing women with relevant skills, knowledge, and resources to actively participate in economic, social, and political spheres within their communities.