International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) |Volume VI, Issue XI, November 2022|ISSN 2454-6186
Poverty and Environmental Sustainability: A Case Study of Gwagwalada Area Council, FCT, Abuja
Ekpo, C. G. and Haruna, I. O.
Department of Science and Environmental Education, University of Abuja, Nigeria
Abstract: This study assessed the effects of poverty on environmental sustainability in Gwagwalada Area Council, Abuja. The study was anchored on three research questions. The survey research design was adopted for the study. The entire inhabitants of the Area Council made up the population of the study. One hundred and forty-three (143) respondents were randomly selected from five communities within the Area Council to constitute the sample size of the study using the simple random sampling procedure. Instrument for data collection for the study was titled: Poverty and Environmental Sustainability Assessment Scale Questionnaire (PESASQ). It was constructed on a 4-point Likert scale format. The descriptive statistics of frequency count, mean, and simple percentage were used for analyzing data and answering the research questions. The study revealed that deforestation, climate change, and depletion of natural resources are caused by poverty in Gwagwalada Area Council, Abuja. It was recommended that inhabitants of Gwagwalada Area Council should be sensitized both formally and informally on the effects of poverty on environmental sustainability by means of environmental education, and government should be more concerned about sustaining environmental resources, hence, alleviating poverty among citizenry is a sine qua non.
Keywords: Environment, Climate Change, Deforestation Poverty, Sustainability
I. INTRODUCTION
In Nigeria as in most African countries, reducing poverty and meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remain a daunting challenge. While Nigeria is blessed with rich environmental resources, a substantial proportion of the population is at risk from natural and human induced environmental hazards. In spite of its abundant natural and human resources, Nigeria is also known for having a high rate of poverty index (Oduwaye & Lawanson, 2012). In order to address the issues associated with poverty in Nigeria, the federal government subscribed to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which was adopted in September 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly. SDGs is the 2030 Agenda which was built on the principle of “leaving no one behind”, and emphasizes a holistic approach to achieving sustainable development for all (Roche, Hans, Agbaegbu, Taylor, Manfred & Oladipo, 2020). The sustainable development goals tagged as “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all”, are a collection of 17 global goals set by the United Nations which are expected to be achieved in the 15 years period between 2015 and 2030 in every country across the globe (Odogwu, 2018).