SOCIAL SCIENCES

This study examined how cultural factors influence the reporting of sexual abuse among teenagers in Ekosodin Community. The research focused on the ways cultural beliefs, family stigma, gender expectations, and institutional barriers shape whether young people disclose abuse. A total of 384 respondents aged 13 to 17 participated, with data collected through a structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics. The findings show that cultural silence, taboo attitudes toward sexual matters, and honour-based thinking strongly affect how teenagers interpret abuse. Many respondents indicated that victims are seen as bringing shame to their families, which discourages disclosure. Family stigma emerged as a major barrier, with most teenagers reporting that families fear reputational damage and often suppress discussion of abuse. Gender also played a notable role in the reporting of abuse. Girls were viewed as more believable when reporting abuse, while boys faced doubt tied to expectations of strength and emotional toughness. The study further revealed widespread distrust of authorities, long delays in case handling, and perceptions of bias or corruption in formal reporting channels. Respondents identified the involvement of trusted community leaders, confidential reporting structures, and school-based awareness programmes as strategies that could encourage disclosure. The study concludes that under-reporting in Ekosodin is sustained by an interplay of cultural norms, family pressures, gendered beliefs, and institutional weaknesses. It recommends community-driven education, strengthened family support, gender-sensitive interventions, and improved institutional responsiveness as essential steps toward creating an environment where teenagers can report sexual abuse safely and without fear.

The role of leadership is very important and it can have effect on the ecology of organization, business as well as employees. Consequently, effective leadership can affect the subordinates’ satisfaction and influences the degree to which they absent from duty. Indeed, to be an effective leader, there is need for a multi approaches rather than a singular style. From literatures
reviewed, the study explained that the goal of an effective leader is to transform the available human resource in order to meet organizational short and long term objectives. In achieving this, the leader has effect on employees’ attitude (job satisfaction) which consequently reflects in their behavior (absenteeism). Path- Goal theory provided the framework that helped explained the view of this study that there are certain factors that determine the choice of a style by a leader; nonetheless there are traits that define an effective leader. The study was a survey design and relied on questionnaire for generation of data. The findings of the study were that, leaders that adopt transformational style have effect on the job satisfaction and absenteeism of the employees. Hence, a manager’s leadership style creates the climate within which employees work and influences the attitude and performance of his team.

This study examine the impact of ICT on land administration efficiency, a focus on Edo Geographic Information Service (EDOGIS). The study examines the evolution of ICT in Nigeria, identify the benefits of ICT to land administration efficiency, examine role Edo Geographic Information Service (EDOGIS) in land administration. The study adopts the survey research method. Survey research design focuses on a sample drawn from a population in which the data collected from the former through questionnaire. The study find out that land administration in Edo State was plagued by corruption, criminality, improper land allocation, and monetization under CDAs before the introduction of the EDOGIS. The EDOGIS is qualitative enough for effective e-goernance of land administration in Edo state. The study reveals that the EDOGIS ICT platform has significantly improved land administration in Edo State. It is user-friendly and intuitive, providing an efficient system for land registration, valuation, and cadastral management. The use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has significantly impacted land administration in Edo State, enhancing town planning and development. The Edo State Geographic Information Service (EDOGIS) has implemented Information and Communication Technology (ICT) services to improve communication between land authorities and the public. This has led to increased transparency, efficiency, and trust in land administration processes. The ICT implementation of EDOGIS faces challenges such as the digital divide systems

This study examines the impact Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue and economic performance in Nigeria using time series data from year 1994-2020. The result of the estimated OLS model shows that there is a positive and significant relationship between VAT revenue and economic performance in Nigeria which was proxied by the real GDP at 5% level of significance. Personal Income Tax was found to positively affect economic growth and was significant at 5% level and lastly, the analysis revealed that a positive relationship exists between VAT revenue and total household consumption expenditure and the relationship was found to have being statistically significant at 5% level. The study recommended that government should consider the implications when making decisions about VAT rates and structure and that a potential solution is to mitigate the negative effects of VAT on lower-income households by implementing a progressive tax system where lower rates are applied to basic necessities and higher rates to luxury goods and services. The study further recommended that in order to enhance economic growth of Nigeria through VAT revenue, the enlightenment of the public on how VAT works, how it is calculated and how it affects them can increase understanding and acceptance of the tax.

This study examines the impact of Federal Government programmes on youth empowerment in Nigeria, with particular focus on the Niger Delta region. Youth empowerment remains a critical strategy for addressing unemployment, poverty, restiveness, and socio-economic instability in Nigeria. Over the years, the Federal Government has introduced several intervention programmes such as the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), National Directorate of Employment (NDE), Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), and N-Power, aimed at improving youth skills acquisition, employment opportunities, entrepreneurship development, and economic inclusion. The study adopts a descriptive survey research design, utilizing both primary and secondary data. Primary data were collected through structured questionnaires administered to selected youths in the Niger Delta, while secondary data were obtained from government publications, journals, and policy documents. The findings reveal that although Federal Government programmes have contributed to skill acquisition, job creation, and improved livelihood for some beneficiaries, challenges such as inadequate funding, corruption, poor implementation strategies, political interference, and limited accessibility have significantly reduced their overall effectiveness. The study concludes that while Federal Government youth empowerment initiatives have made measurable impacts in the Niger Delta, their potential has not been fully realized. It recommends improved transparency, proper monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, increased funding, community participation, and policy continuity to enhance programme effectiveness and ensure sustainable youth empowerment in the region.

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

This study empirically examined the impact of external debt burden on infrastructural growth in Nigeria from 1981-2018. Being a time series data, and to avoid spurious regression result in our model, a test for stationary of the data using Augmented Dickey-Fuller unit root test was carried out. The variables; infrastructural growth, domestic debt, external debt, exchange rate, and interest rate were found to be stationary at their first differences. Then, an ARDL Bound Co-integration technique was used to establish if the stationary variables are co-integrated in the long-run. The finding indicates that the variables were found to be co-integrated in the long run. Further, an ARDL was employed to obtain long run coefficients of the respective regressors. The ARDL result revealed that Domestic Debt (negative impact), Exchange Rate (negative impact), and Interest Rate (positive impact) exerts a
significant influence on infrastructural growth while External Debt (positive impact) was found to be insignificantly related to the growth of infrastructures in Nigeria. It recommends amongst others, that the government should as a matter of priority create more favourable institutional policy and regulatory framework to meet up these challenges. On the whole, there is need for the policymakers to adopt policy framework consistent with availability of external finance that is credibly maintained. Conclusively, infrastructure growth is one of major elements of structural reforms in developing economy like Nigeria because of its expected large economic and social impact.

This study investigates the profound and symbiotic relationship between corruption and insecurity within the metropolitan context of Benin City, the capital of Edo State, Nigeria. While the national discourse often treats these challenges in isolation, this research posits that entrenched corruption acts as a major catalyst for escalating insecurity, creating a cyclical impediment to socio-economic development.

Utilizing a case study approach and qualitative/quantitative data, the paper specifically examines how various forms of corruption—including the diversion of public security funds, the compromise of law enforcement recruitment and effectiveness, and general bureaucratic embezzlement (e.g., ghost payroll schemes)—directly contribute to the rise of specific crimes. Key security challenges analyzed include: kidnapping for ransom, armed robbery, and cultism/organized political violence.

The findings reveal that corruption within the state's administrative and security architecture not only depletes resources meant for effective policing and infrastructure but also fosters deep public mistrust, thereby hindering community cooperation critical for intelligence gathering. The study concludes that meaningful improvement in the security landscape of Benin City requires a holistic strategy that prioritizes comprehensive anti-corruption reforms within the government and security sectors to break the destructive feedback loop.

Despite the available body of research on the impact of socio-cultural variables on marital stability in Nigeria, there remains a need for further investigation, particularly in Benin, Edo state. Understanding comprehensively, the impact of socio-cultural variables on marital stability is therefore essential for promoting individual and familial well-being, and for identifying areas for intervention and support that can help to strengthen marital unions. Educationally,to some men it is very important that their wife should be less educated than themselves ifthey are going to achieve marital stability. These men feel threatened in their marital leadership role of their wives are better educated and this could lead to conflict in the home and also create confusion between couples.

The study examined the psychosocial impact of child defilement and social work intervention in Egor Local Government Area. The objective of the study was to examine the psychosocial impact of child defilement in Egor Local Government Area; to investigate the causes of child defilement in Egor Local Government Area; to know the societal responses to child defilement in Egor Local Government Area; to assess the roles of social workers in the issues of Child defilement and to find out possible ways child defilement be curbed.
The cross sectional research design was adopted for this study. Four hundred (400) copies of questionnaire were distributed to 400 respondents in Egor Local Government Area. Data collected were analyzed using frequency count, percentages and mean, with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) 24.0.
The empirical result revealed child defilement often leads to poor childhood experiences and often leads low self-esteem and that the persistent failure to meet a child’s physical and/or psychological needs makes children vulnerable to defilement. The study recommends that strict laws should be enforced to deal with abusers in the society and that parents should train up their children and always be on guard for their children not to fall victims.