PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING IN NIGERIA: A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS (1962-2020)

Abstract

The title of this study is Public Administration and Development Planning in
Nigeria: A Critical Evaluation of National Development Plans (1962-2020). The objectives of the
study include examining the role of public administration in development planning in Nigeria,
critically evaluating various national development plans in Nigeria to identify their specific
challenges, and proffering solutions aimed at ameliorating these challenges to enhance better
national development plans. To achieve these objectives, the research methodology adopted
includes the use of the documentary research design, the use of qualitative descriptive analysis for
the analysis of the generated data, the area of study in Nigeria, and the population of the study
includes various stakeholders in public administration, while data was collected from secondary
sources. The findings made include that public administration plays a very crucial role in
development planning in Nigeria; the various national development plans after evaluation had
specific challenges that were unique to each national development plan; the solutions were actually
proffered, but to a great extent, the various political leadership did not actually address that
concerns raised due to sundry issues. The recommendations made include enhancing the role of
public administration in national development plans, which requires a comprehensive approach
that integrates policy interventions in public administration and human capital development for
sustainable national development; each national development needs to be re-evaluated to better
understand its inherent specific challenges and the use of a multi-sector approach to planning and
implementation of public sector programs and policies.