A brief tour through the history of nigerian federalism reveals sharp turning points in federal and regional fiscal relations, based alternately on principles of derivation, national interest, and the centripetal forces of military governments3. Fiscal federalism in the nigerian context involves the allocation of expenditure and taxation powers shared among the federal, state and local governments. Fiscal federalism, governance and internally generated revenue. This is not unexpected as the federal government is solely responsible for the collection of mining rights and royalties, petroleum profit tax nigerias major.
Pdf taxation, revenue allocation and fiscal federalism. Fiscal federalism and economic growth process in nigeria. Download pdf re inventing federalism in nigeria free online. Fiscal federalism and issues of resource control in nigeria. Fiscal federalism has occupied the front burner of political discourse in nigeria, since the return to civilian rule. Federalism is a political concept in which power to govern is shared between national, and subnational governments creating what is often called a federation arowolo. In the nigeria context, this consists of a federal government, 36 states, federal capital territory and 774 local governments. Mar 29, 2017 a former governor of akwa ibom, chief victor attah, says the practice of fiscal federalism is the panacea to the myriad of problems plaguing nigeria. Fiscal federalism and issues of resource control in nigeria nenyiaba, c. Conceptual explanation it has been discussed and agreed at many fora that the discussion of contemporary federalism seems to have started with kenneth c. Conceptual issues fiscal federalism is a byproduct of federalism. Fiscal federalism in nigeria the question of an acceptable formula for revenue sharing among the component tiers of the nigerian nation is one of the most protracted and controversial debates in the political and macroeconomic management of the economy. Examining weak subnational finances in nigerian states chukwuma agu african institute for applied economics,enugu, nigeria abstract one of the most crucial challenges to nigerias ailing fiscal federalism is the inability of states to raise, retain and manage revenue.
Current structure of fiscal federalism in nigeriaa legacy of military rule 4. Taxation, revenue allocation and fiscal federalism in nieria. It involves the financial relationship among the three tiers of government. The term federalism is derived from the latin word fidere meaning to trust or to entrust some agreed values to a central entity of a given country 5. Before we start discussing federalism in nigeria, it is pertinent to know what federalism really is. Fiscal federalism is concerned with the public finances of the various orders of government in a federal system. The feature of nigerian federalism could only be better understood by a reproduction of the definition of the concept federalism, professor nwabueze in his definition, defined federalism as an arrangement whereby governmental powers within a country are shared between a national, country wide government and a number of regional governments. Yet, even today, this issue continues to be in the front burner of national discourse. The supreme court and federalism in nigeria cambridge core. Fiscal federalism and local government finance in nigeria eric. The practice of fiscal federalism in nigeria has been inhibited by several factors which include, the dominance of the federal government in the revenue sharing, the protracted period of. It is intended to identify new ideas for fiscal federalism with less conflict in nigerias 3rd republic.
This book uses the political economy approach to examine the relative failure of federalism in nigeria. The practice of fiscal federalism in nigeria has been inhibited by several factors which include, the dominance of the federal government in the revenue sharing, the protracted period of interregnum rule of the military, and overreliance on the revenue from the federation account. For instance, federalism is a form of governmental and institutional structure designed to cope with the dual but equally difficult task of maintaining unity while preserving its diversity. Given the territorially delineated cleavages abounding in nigeria and the historical legacy of divisions among ethnic groups, regions, and sections, the federal imperative was so fundamental that even military governmentscharacteristically unitarian, hierarchical, and centralistattached importance to the continuation of a federal system of. Download pdf thepoliticaleconomyoffederalisminnigeria. Fiscal federalism in the nigerian context involves the allocation of. Herber, 1979, looked at fiscal federalism as the division of fiscal powers between sovereign levels of government in a federation. Nigeria operates a federal system with three tiers federal, state, and local governments table 1. Pdf the paper posits that fiscal federalism is a particular pattern of constitutional division of revenue powers and responsibilities among. Fiscal federalism, which mirrors the amount of fiscal autonomy and responsibility accorded to subnational government, has been an important subject in the policy equation of many developing, transition, and developed countries this paper, therefore, examined the evolution, structure, and practices of fiscal federalism in nigeria. Nigeria is a federation consisting of states and federal capital territory, federal. In spite of this confusion, we can still conceptualize federalism. It shows the nexus between the political and the economic aspects of the countrys federalism. Federalism, especially in large or diverse countries, can also improve service delivery and democratic resilience, ensure decisions are made at.
The calls or demands for resource control clearly demonstrate that this is still an unsettled issue. Fiscal federalism and resource control in nigeria ngozi nwogwugwu, phd. For the use of the term fiscal federalism as applied to scotland, see full fiscal autonomy for scotland. The ordinary least square ols technique is adopted. Dickson abstract the objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of fiscal federalism on economic welfare in nigeria between 1970 and 2009 using an econometric approach. The findings of this study indicate that the allocation formulae were not strictly adhered to by the federal government. Obong victor attah has again said that, unless nigeria adopts the true fiscal federalism system, the country would continue to wallow in its current. The future of fiscal federalism download ebook pdf, epub. Nigeria to which the term federalism has properly been applied. Current structure of fiscal federalism in nigeria a legacy of military rule 4. It is a system which refers to the existence in a country of more than one level of government, each. That is, it is manifest by the financial aspects of the devolvement of authority from the national to the regional and local levels. However, be that as it may, to daniel 2007, it means several varieties of political arrangement in nigeria to which the term federalism has properly been applied. The concept of fiscal federalism is not to be associated with fiscal decentralization in officially declared federations only.
Theory and dimensions abstractthe dynamism and complexity of nigeria s federalism has attracted academic scrutiny. Federal countries differ a great deal in their choices specifically, how the division of fiscal powers is allocated among various orders and the associated fiscal arrangements. Fiscal federalism in nigeria in any federal system, there must be an arrangement on how the revenue of the state will be shared among the component parts. Thus, one also may find a definition according to which federalism in its broadest sense marks a multilayer or pluralistic concept of social and political life. Since nigerias transition from military to civilian rule in 1999, the countrys supreme court has risen from a position of relative political obscurity and institutional vulnerability into a prominent and independent adjudicator of intergovernmental disputes in this chronically conflicted federation. Faculty of management sciences, nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, anambra state, nigeria. Federalism and political restructuring in nigeria download. Fiscal federalism in nigeria an analysis of issues and. Federalism can be seen as a system of government in which governmental powers that exist in a country are shared between central government.
A former governor of akwa ibom, chief victor attah, says the practice of fiscal federalism is the panacea to the myriad of problems plaguing nigeria. See below for the abstract, table of contents, list of figures, list of tables, list of appendices, list of abbreviations and chapter one. Fiscal federalism and challenges of development in nigeria. This book takes nigeria as a case study for examining how the various issues involved in fiscal federalism in a developing country are handled. The clamour for the adoption of true fiscal federalism in nigeria has been a burning issue in several quarters in the last three decades and has been documented in several articles, amongst which is the empirical study of arowolo 2011. An overview of core issues by kayode oladele according to professor akpan ekpo, a onetime vice chancellor of university of uyo, during his 2004. Continuing quest for stability and nationbuilding explores the nature of and the debate over a number of recurrent issues, such as the origins of nigerian federalism, the number of state units in the federal system, fiscal issues, political parties, distributional issues, and intergovernmental relations in nigerian federalism since the establishment of. Fiscal federalism true solution to nigerias problems. It is intended to identify new ideas for fiscal federalism with less conflict in nigeria s 3rd republic. Taxation, revenue allocation and fiscal federalism in. Taxation, revenue allocation, and fiscal federalism in nigeria 31 total nigerian government revenues were collected by the federal government. Fiscal federalism, local government, autonomy, finance 1. Debates on nigerias fiscal federalism preceded the gradual evolution of nigeria into a colonial federal state in 1954.
The political economy of federalism in nigeria dele. Fiscal federalism is characterized by fiscal relations between central and lower levels of government. Nigeria can be said to be operating the federal system of government, whereas in actual practice, the country is tending towards a unitary system. Fiscal federalism and resource control in nigeria doi. Fiscal federalism and economic growth process in nigeria owolabi usman,phd department of economics, osun state university, osogbo, nigeria. The central feature of nigerias political economy is the relationship between oil resources and the state. The methods attempted to unveil the various revenue principles such as the principle of derivation, equality of states and demographic strength in. An examination of relevant issues in nigerias fiscal federalism international journal of research in humanities and social studies vol 2 issue 3 march 2015 3 political units because benefit regions for many public goods and services are open entities. Our central argument is that nigerias fiscal federalism has not spurred the desired development as envisaged by the architects of the system. Fiscal federalism true solution to nigerias problems attah. The evolution, development and practice of federalism in.
The practice of fiscal federalism in nigeria has been inhibited by several factors which include, the dominance of the federal government in the revenue sharing. Fiscal federalism is essentially about the allocation of government resourc. The centralization of nigerias fiscal federalism began with the report of the dina commission 1968 which argued that an appropriate revenue allocation system should result in a more equitable distribution of revenue among the states to achieve a. Fiscal federalism, local government, autonomy, finance. Federalism can be seen as a system of government in which governmental powers that exist in a country are shared between central government and other component units i. Federalism is a means of ensuring peace, stability and mutual accommodation in countries that have territorially concentrated differences of identity, ethnicity, religion or language. Nations are turning to devolution to improve the performance of their public sectors. Fiscal federalism is the fiscal relations and transaction between the three levels of government. This study therefore attempts to empirically assess the state of nigeria s fiscal federalism in terms of its impact on. Kupoluyi department of political science and public administration babcock university,ilishanremo, ogun state abstract. Fiscal federalism is characterised by the fiscal relations between central and lower levels of government. Nigeria is a federation consisting of states and federal capital territory, federal government, 36 st. This gave rise to the thinking that federalism is a process of formation of a particular kind of political union, with at least two autonomous but interdependent levels of governments 6, that form of government where.
E 2 1 department of public administration, federal polytechnic kauranamoda, zamfara state nigeria email. Akindele and olaopa2002 held that fiscal federalism was deeply rooted in the federal system of government. Fiscal federalism, governance and internally generated. Fiscal discipline and service delivery in nigeria festus o.
Download the complete political science project topic and material chapter 15 titled fiscal federalism in nigeria a case study of olusegun obasanjos regime 1999 to 2007 here on projects. Gdp, inflation and exchange rate in nigeria between 1970 and 2010. Pdf a comparative study of fiscal federalism in nigeria. The fiscal relationships between and among the constituents of the federation is explained in. Federal countries differ a great deal in their choices specifically, how the division of fiscal powers is allocated among various orders and the. Given the territorially delineated cleavages abounding in nigeria and the historical legacy of divisions among ethnic groups, regions, and sections, the federal imperative was so fundamental that even military governmentscharacteristically unitarian, hierarchical, and centralistattached importance to the continuation of a federal system of government. Comparative perspectives from canadian fiscal federalism olumide victor ekanade 0 1 2 recommended citation 0 redeemers university, ogun state nigeria 1 commons, other international and area studies commons, and the political economy commons 2 part of the african studies commons, comparative politics commons.
Indeed it was one positive aspect of the practice of federalism in nigeria. The paper therefore concluded that the federal government ought. In other words, it is the study of how competencies expenditure side and fiscal instruments revenue side are allocated across. Ekpo and enamidem ubokudom eds, issues in fiscal federalism and revenue allocation in nigeria, ibadan.
Issues, challenges and policy options article pdf available in ekonomski anali 56189. This paper, therefore, inquired into the causes of dissatisfaction and violent agitation arising from fiscal federa. Fiscal federalism in nigeria an analysis of issues and challenges. The country having experienced fiscal federalism for over 50 years is still beset with problems. Mar 29, 2017 former governor of akwa ibom state, arc. Taxation, revenue allocation and fiscal federalism in nigeria. Specifically, the nigerian fiscal federalism structure involves the allocation of expenditure and taxraising powers among the federal, state and local governments. Fiscal federalism and economic development in nigeria. In fact, fiscal federalism is a general normative framework for assignment of functions to the different levels of government and appropriate fiscal instruments for carrying out these functions oates, 1999. Pdf taxation, revenue allocation and fiscal federalism in. Social science the political economy of federalism in nigeria. Theory and dimensions dare arowolo lecturer, department of political science and public administration, adekunle ajasin university, nigeria abstract the dynamism and complexity of nigeria s federalism has attracted academic scrutiny.
The politics of revenue allocation and resource control have been a dingdung affair for a very long time in nigeria. The fiscal relationships between and among the constituents. It dates back to 1946, when the richards constitution was introduced. Comparative perspectives from canadian fiscal federalism olumide victor ekanade 0 1 2 recommended citation 0 redeemers university, ogun state nigeria 1 commons, other international and area studies commons, and the political economy commons 2 part of the african studies. The fiscal arrangement among the different tiers of government in a federal structure is often referred to as fiscal federalism. Therefore, the problem with federalism in nigeria is the mixapplication or nonapplication of this clause especially as it has to do with power distribution awa, 1977.
Download pdf re inventing federalism in nigeria free. The issue of fiscal federalism has engaged various commissions and committees since the colonial days. This is because it has generated so many problems capable of threatening the corporate existence and continuity of the nigerian state. Conceptually, fiscal operations of any economy can be viewed from two extreme forms. Issues of distribution of scarce but allocatable resources have often beclouded the desires of nigerians to generate the resources that are expected to be shared.
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