The Nigerian State and Crisis of Development A Study of Bayelsa State, 2010-2020

Since the creation of Bayelsa State, several administrations have come and gone with various policy frameworks that are intended to drive development. However, the situation in the state reveals the opposite. Despite the numerous resources the state is blessed with in the Niger Delta region, she still suffers from the problem of lack of development. Thus, this study examined the Nigerian State and the crisis of development with a particular focus on Bayelsa State between 2010-2020. The study was led by three research questions and three research objectives. The investigation was guided by the Marxian political economy approach to provide a theoretical underpinning to the study. A descriptive research design was used for this study. The sample size of 400 respondents was chosen using a simple random. Structured questionnaires were employed to collect information for this investigation. 385 questionnaire copies were retrieved. The outcomes of the research revealed that the State battles with certain observed inhibitive factors to development which have over the years thrown the State into a misery of some sort. The survey also found that despite the numerous natural and human resources the country (Nigeria) significantly found in Bayelsa State, the crisis of development is still significantly felt as the leadership has been over the years incapable of driving the needed development the country as well as Bayelsa State needs within the period under review. Thus, the study recommended among others, that the Bayelsa State government should focus more on Human Capital Development (HCD) through people-centric developmental programmes.