Seacoast Smuggling of Rice and Economic Development in Nigeria: Assessment of 2006-2016

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue XII, December 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186

Seacoast Smuggling of Rice and Economic Development in Nigeria: Assessment of 2006-2016

Abegunde, O. (PhD) and Fabiyi, R. (M.Sc in view)
Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

Abstract:-This research investigates smuggling of rice on Nigerian seacoasts and its effects on economic development. The Lagos state and Ogun State seacoasts were used as case study. The study covers the period between 2006 and 2016.This period can relatively be considered to have recorded high rate of smuggling through Nigerian seacoasts. Both primary and secondary data were used for the research and snowball sampling technique was used to collect primary data from actual smugglers, former smugglers, and traders of smuggled goods in the studied areas. Simple percentage was used in analysing data generated from the primary sources while content utilisation was used in analysing data generated through secondary sources. Smuggling of rice was confirmed to occur on high frequency on Nigerian seacoasts between 2006 and 2016. Smuggling of items on Nigerian seacoasts increased between 2006 and 2016 due to high unemployment rate, endemic poverty in the country, individual financial greed, general economic hardship, harsh and detrimental government policies, and love for foreign goods. Seacoast smuggling in Nigeria from 2006 to 2016 negatively affects economic development through economic sabotage of local industries, threat to food security, revenue loss for the government, and health hazard to the residents. Efforts to curb smuggling especially rice on Nigerian seacoasts between 2006 and 2016 were largely ineffective. New measures and improvements on existing measures were recommended to curb smuggling of rice and other smuggled items on Nigerian seacoasts were reduction of port duties, creation of a new anti-smuggling security agency or department from the existing relevant agencies, financial motivation for anti-smuggling security agents, equipping security agents with modern equipment, creation of gainful employment for the youth, establishment youth-targeted economic empowerment programmes, training and retraining of anti-smuggling security agents, conscious fostering of international cooperation. Smuggling can be reduced to a manageable level if the government demonstrate the will and make its policies and programmes citizens oriented.

Keywords: seacoast, smuggling, economy, maritime and border.

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