The
reversed order in the economic space of Nigeria conforms to the Orwellian 1984 tale[1].
Having successfully formed an extanct part of history and being willed into
existence from Lord Lugard’s colonial laboratory of artificial insemination by
colonial friends, Nigeria
has had to deal with grave issues that surround her, deciding he who pursues
and he who runs. Some have proved insurmountable, while others have been buried
as soon as their heads rose. The economy of Nigeria is one of such grave
issues, having evolved through the phase of agriculture as the economic
mainstay up until the oil wealth.
 |
| Nigerians | Source: Google |
A brief
sweep into history contains details of Nigeria’s economic slip into
recession. As indicated in the 2016 second quarter report of the National
Bureau of Statistics[2],
Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted by 2.06 per cent. The report
includes that decline has caused the Naira to go weaker while lower oil prices
dragged the oil sector down. The report also showed that agriculture had
picked, showing the government’s determination to shift the nation’s revenue
source away from crude oil to agriculture.
Human Rights over the
years has evolved with our economic systems ranking from the development model
after the Second World War, focused on growth and development at the
macro-economic level. Today we observe a broadening of the term development to
include a distinct micro-level perspective which also takes into account
individual well-being. This individual component is closely linked to the
recognition of the instrumental role of individual participation and choice for
development and underlines that particular attention that has to be paid to
disadvantaged and most-marginalized groups. Furthermore, the emergence of ‘good
governance’ in the late 1980s reflects a growing awareness that development in
economic terms cannot be detached from capacity building and institutional
considerations in the political field.
These changing perceptions eventually paved the way for
increased attention to the relationship between economic development and
democratic governance as well as for an enhanced role for human rights as a
means and objective of development.
 |
| Civil Rights in Nigeria | Source: Google. |
THE
NIGERIAN ECONOMY BEFORE NOW
When
the civilian administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo came into power in
1999, the exchange rate was NGN 85 to USD 1. In the following years, the naira
had so depreciated that USD 1 could buy NGN 114.50 in the official markets and
NGN 138 in the parallel market. The 2002 budget however proposed a whopping 38%
cut in capital expenditures from the 2001 level. If added to huge allocations
of NGN 49.6 billion to the presidency, and NGN 10 billion to the National
Identity Card Project, all of which are and still are unproductive sectors, the
question remains “How much real investment does Nigeria have? What is our real
income? And how much do we have for the future?”
The
instance of allocating NGN 31.4 billion instead of NGN 20.5 billion for defence
in the 2001 budget where less than 50% of funds were disbursed occurred again
in 2000. It happened in 2001 and in 2001 because the National Assembly and
government remained uninformed to the liquidity crisis. While striving to build
a strong economy, the government therefore paid no attention to the prevailing
exchange rate regulations.
The
greatest betrayal Nigerians ever witnessed in her economic scene is the
proposed 2002 budget where allocations were made to the agricultural sector.
Though the Nigerian agricultural sector was in shambles and needed a revamp, it
still contributed the lion’s share to employment and the GDP AT 33%. Since one
of the principal and cardinal objectives of the 2002 budget is the alleviation
of poverty, one would have expected the allocation to agriculture to reflect
this intention. Instead, we find the allocation to agriculture to be a paltry
3.8 billion, about one-third of what was allocated to the white elephant- the
National Identity Card Project.
As
human right advocates, there lay no problem in choosing sides as pertain the
welfarist-monetarist divides. It is simply a matter of equity that should people have jobs, inflation can be
contained.
THE
NIGERIAN ECONOMY NOW (2016)
Nigeria
slipped into recession with the latest growing figures showing that the economy
contracted 2.06% between April and June, 2016. We have thus seen consecutive
quarters of declining growth, a practical definition of recession. The oil
industry with crude oil sales account for 70% of government income was also hit
by weaker global prices, (Nigerian Bureau of Statistics- NBS) making the price
of oil fall from about $112 a barrel in 2014 to below $50 at the moment
Outside
theoil industry, the figures showed that the fall in the Nigerian currency, the
naira, has hurt the economy. It was allowed to float freely in June to help
kick-start the economy. The government admitted that there had been strong
growth in other sectors by finding positive news in the figures based on the
growth in the agricultural and solid minerals sectors, areas where the federal
government had placed priority
Nigeria slipped into recession because:
1. Nigeria
runs an oil-dependent economy. Experts and analysts have blamed successive
governments for operating mono-product economy, based on oil which is
vulnerable to economic challenges.
2. The
lack of sustainable developmental strategies. Nigeria is not only an
oil-producing nation but a rental economy. As such, collecting rents from
multinationals that produce the country’s natural resources cannot be used as
bias for development.
3. The
mismanagement of Nigeria’s petroleum revenues. The little made off oil is
practically misused and managed to the detriment of the nation
4. Excessive
borrowing by the government.
5. High
Interest rates and Inflation.
HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEVELOPMENT
The Inter-American
Democratic Charter, adopted by the General Assembly of the Organisation of
American States in 2001, defines democracy in Article 3 as:
… the access to and the exercise of power in accordance with the rule of law, the holding of periodic, free, and fair elections based on secret balloting and universal suffrage as an expression of the sovereignty of the people, the pluralistic system of political parties and organisations, and the separation of powers and independence of the branches of government. [3]
 |
| Nigerian Coat of Arms | Source: www.nigeriarights.gov.ng |
When the relationship
between human rights and development was established in the 1970s, the link
between the two concepts was often connected with debates about democracy and the
discontinuation of assistance to a country whose government grossly violated
human rights and the punitive aspect of the linkage appeared to prevail in
public opinion. Most donors have had experiences with the withdrawal of aid,
often a much debated and not necessarily effective measure; and active
promotion of human rights through, for example, assistance to the judiciary or
human rights institutions, can be interpreted as interference in internal
affairs.
In the course of the
1980s, the relationship between human rights and development co-operation began
to take on a different form. The use of development co-operation to promote
human rights through, e.g., additional support to democratizing governments,
support to human rights NGOs or decentralized co-operation, received increasing
attention. Gradually, human rights became part of the dialogue between donors
and recipients. One of the first instruments formally establishing the linkage
and confirming the emerging human rights policy was the Lomé III Convention
between the EC and its partner states in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific
(signed in 1984). Human rights were mentioned in the Preamble of the Convention
and further elaborated upon in the joint declarations attached to it. The
dramatic changes in Central and Eastern Europe in 1989 influenced governments’
views on the relationship between human rights and sustainable development,
generating an approach where the individual was placed at the Centre, becoming
the main protagonist and beneficiary of development. The conviction emerged
that, in the long term, respect for human rights, the rule of law, political
pluralism and effective, accountable political institutions form the basis of
all development and equitable distribution.
The right to development
is another principle deeply rooted in the Charter of the United Nations, the
Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International Human Rights
Covenants. Development and human rights are intricately linked. As such,
numerous documents have explicitly acknowledged their indivisibility, including
the Declaration on the Right to Development (1986), the African Charter on
Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
(2007), the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (1993) and the Rio
Declaration on Environment and Development (1992).[4]
Hand in hand, both
development and human rights movements share the same enthusiasm and motivation
to promote the freedom, well-being and dignity of individuals. On the one hand
human development improves the capabilities and freedoms of individuals while
on the other hand human rights provide the framework for a social arrangement
that facilitates and secures capabilities and freedoms expressed by human
development. Article 1 of the Declaration on the Right to Development states
that:
The right to development is an inalienable human right by virtue of which every human person and all peoples are entitled to participate in, contribute to, and enjoy economic, social, cultural and political development, in which all human rights and fundamental freedoms can be fully realised[5].
The preamble of the
Declaration also states that:
Development is a comprehensive economic, social, cultural and political process, which aims at the constant improvement of the well being of the entire population and of all individuals on the basis of their active, free and meaningful participation in development and in the fair distribution of benefits resulting there from.
Article 1 identifies the
human person as the beneficiary of the right to development. It imposes
obligations on individual states to ensure equal and adequate access to
essential resources and on the international community to promote fair
development policies and effective international co-operation.
An important achievement
in establishing the relationship between human rights and development were the
so-called ‘Sustainable Development Goals’ (SDGs)[6].
At the UN Millennium Summit in 2000, world leaders agreed upon a set of
time-bound and measurable goals and targets for combating poverty, hunger,
disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination against
women. These goals aim at achieving measurable progress in a number of specific
fields which are considered essential for human development and several lead to
increased enjoyment of human rights, such as primary education. The goals
provide a framework for development co-operation institutions to work
coherently together towards a common end. Close co-operation is imperative as a
large majority of nations can only reach the MDGs with substantial support from
outside. Progress toward the SDGs is being measured on a regular basis.
The SDGs have led to
increased emphasis on human rights-based approaches to development and poverty
reduction. A human rights-based approach deals with the substance of the
development support initiatives, but focuses on the way in which development is
being approached. The human rights-based approach, in essence, requires that
policies and institutions working on development and reduction of poverty base
themselves on the obligations that emanate from the international human rights
conventions (International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, International
Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights, CERD, CEDAW, CAT, CRC and
CRPD).
Human rights are
inherent to the person and belong equally to all human beings and their
realization has to be carried out as a participatory, egalitarian and
transparent process. Human rights instruments, such as the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, provide a coherent framework for practical action
at the international and domestic levels to reduce poverty. The human
rights-based approach to poverty reduction upholds the principles of
universality and indivisibility, empowerment and transparency, accountability
and participation.
The United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP)[7]
plays a central role within the UN in realizing the human rights-based approach
to development by focusing its policy, programming and capacity development
support to this approach. In particular, it encourages all actors to adopt a
human rights-based approach in tailoring and customizing the SustainableDevelopment
Goals targets to the local context.Focuses on the capacities of duty-holders to
meet their obligations to respect, protect and fulfill rights; as well as the
capacities of rights-bearers to claim their rights.Enhances the synergy between
poverty reduction and democratic governance.Programmes for local governance,
access to justice, capacity of human rights institutions, grassroots
initiatives for community development, and human rights education will be
included among pro-poor poverty programming.Engages in the work of UN Treaty
Bodies; particularly strives to incorporate selected and relevant
recommendations that result from periodic reviews into its programme
development.Promotes and supports participatory assessment methodologies that
link rights, obstacles and strengths around which poor people can secure their
livelihood.Build in-house capacity to undertake multi-disciplinary review and
analysis that maximize meaningful participation of the poor. The human
rights-based approach is a perspective and process that can lead more directly
to increased enjoyment of human rights. Development processes – traditionally
technical and economically orientated - are becoming increasingly focused on
enjoyment of rights and promotion of values. One of the most important aspects
of this approach is the increased recognition of poverty as one of the greatest
barriers to the universal enjoyment of human rights. In short, HRBA aims for
sustainable outcomes by analyzing and addressing the inequalities,
discriminatory practices and unjust power relations which are often at the
heart of development problems.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS1. Solve extreme poverty and hunger.2. Achieve universal primary education.3. Empower women and promote equality between women and men.4. Reduce under-five mortality by two-thirds.5. Reduce maternal mortality by three-quarters.6. Reverse the spread of killer diseases, especially HIV/AIDS and malaria.7. Ensure environmental sustainability.8. Create a global partnership for development, with targets for aid, trade and debt relief.
The public policy responses to economic
recession from the angle of The Human Right analyst has its background in the
United Nations International Covenant on economic, Social and Cultural Rights
and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). With the conglomeration
of the financial, fuel and food crises, the global economic crisis
isdevastating lives and livelihoods across the world and it is rapidly turning
into a human rights crisis. One year on from the near-collapse of the
international financial system, this briefing explores the human rights
dimensions of the crisis, its causes and consequences, and worldwide responses.From
an economic perspective, the harmful impacts of the crisis on human lives and
dignity tend tobe seen as tragic but inevitable consequences of unpredictable
and uncontrollable market forces. Ahuman rights perspective challenges this
complacency; these devastating consequences are notinevitable, nor should they
be acceptable. The causes of the crisis can be clearly located in
humandecisions and concrete actions (or inactions) of governments and powerful
economic actors, and shouldnot be seen as the result of forces outside of human
control. A human rights approach demandsaccountability for these human
decisions. It requires that negative effects be avoided or mitigated and
itempowers people affected to demand respect for their human rights.[8]
The
following are portions of these international documents and authorities that
define positive response from the economic and human right view respectively:
1. The
Human Right to economic, political, social and cultural development which is
sustainable, resulting in fair distribution of benefits to individuals and
people in a society, and which allows for the realization of all other human
rights.
2. The
Human Right to an International environment where human right to development
and all other human rights can be fully realized.
3. The
human right to full and equal participation in developmental and environmental
planning and decision-making, and in shaping all policies affecting one’s
community and living conditions at the local, national and international
levels.
4. The
right to an adequate standard of living, including access to safe food, water
and housing.
5. The
human right to work and to receive wages that contribute to an adequate
standard of living.
6. The
human right to safe working conditions
7. The
human right to equal access for all persons to productive resources
As
inferred from the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social
and Cultural Rights[9], the
question remains: “What do we make of an economy if not the standard of living,
the collective focus of money and the management of money, the means of
subsistence”
“Economy is an area of the production, distribution, or trade, and consumption of goods and services by different agents in a given geographical location[10]”
The
government’s development initiatives have not managed to reduce poverty in the
country and have also failed to diversify a petroleum-based economy, with a
non-sustainable extraction led-growth model still being applied. This has led
to severe environmental degradation, with alarming desertification and erosion
trends. The Nigerian government has to rethink its strategies and adopt
environmentally friendly long-term planning policies based on renewable energy
sources and adequately environmental management. The poor should be empowered
and given stake in managing the environment and natural resources.
Birthed
in 1954 and signed on the 16th December, 1966, the International
Covenant on economic, Social and Cultural Rights became effective on 3rd
January, 1976 as a document of the United Nations Trusteeship Agreements listed
by the General Assembly as Non-self governing. It is a declaration of the
essentialsof a man’s life. Part 1, Article1 of this document recognizes theright of “all people” to freely pursue
their economic, socialand cultural goals. It also contains a clause that
enables the management and disposal of resources by individuals. It covers the
negative right that a people should not be deprived of their necessary means of
subsistence and that the persons in authority should respect the individual’s
economic decisions.
As
relates Nigeria’s economy development and human right, Clauses of concern
include an individual’s right to
1. Work
under “just and favourable conditions”,with the right to form and join trade
unions[11]
2. An
adequate standard of living, including adequate food, clothing and housing and
the continuous improvement of living conditions.[12]
3. Health,
specifically the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. [13]
4. Education,
including free universal primary education, generally available secondary
education, and equally accessible higher education. This should be directed to
the full development of the human personality and the sense of its dignity and
enable all persons to participate effectively in society[14]
The
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights[15]
makes general recommendations to the General Assembly of the United Nations
Organisation on appropriate measures to realize these rights. However, certain
factors have frustrated these recommendations and the realization of these
rights subsequently. A good example of this is the clause that covers
education:
“Education, including free universal primary education, generally available secondary education, and equally accessible higher education. This should be directed to the full development of the human personality and the sense of its dignity and enable all persons to participate effectively in society[16]”
The
above clause and others, backed with the principle of progressive realization
in the ICESCR, which states that:
all parties shall take steps…to the maximum of its available resources, with a view to achieving progressively, the full realisation of the rights recognized in the present covenant by all appropriate means, including particularly, the adoption of legislative measures [17]
havebeen
promptly unfollowed by the principles in Nigeria’s legislation. Or what do we
say of a constitution which upon following the Education clause in the ICESCR
includes more of a condition stating:
“Government shall strive to eradicate illiteracy; and to this end, Government shall as and when practicable, provide-(a) Free, compulsory and universal primary education;(b) Free university education; and(c) Free adult literacy programme[18]”
This is
more of a deliberately regressive measure which impede the goal of the ICESCR
despite the minimum core obligations to provide at the least, minimum essential
levels of each of the rights.
The
Nigerian budgets too have been easier said than done as in the last ten
years,they have retained certain common goals and policies namely:
1. Alleviatepoverty
by fostering opportunities for job creation
2. Achieve
high economic growth through better mobilization and prudent use of economic
resources.
3. Build a
strong economy by encouraging private sector participation (privatisation)
4. Ensure
good governance by transforming development administration into a service and
result-oriented system.
The fact remains still, that while the
goals cannot be faulted, the means for their achievement, that is, the
budgetary allocations paint quite a different picture.
CONSEQUENCES OF ECONOMIC
RECESSION ON HUMANRIGHTS
1.
World
hunger will reach an historic high in 2009 with more than one billion people
going hungryevery day[19]
(FAO, 2009). This means that one in six people will be too poor to eat
adequately. The food crisis that occurred as a result of the rapid rise in food
prices in 2008 is far from over, as food prices remain high in 40 developing
countries and the loss of jobs and remittances produce further food insecurity
(N Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, 2009). Chronic malnutrition will
affect children’s physical and intellectual development for the rest of their
lives.
2.
Thesub-prime
mortgage housing crisis has left many people without homes or shelters, making
many people face foreclosure, some of them victims of fraud and abusive
practices by mortgage brokers[20].
In developing countries, the number of people living in slums will rise, and
millions more slum dwellers will face lack of access to clean water and
sanitation, and increased insecurity of tenure[21].
3.
The
World Bank estimates that up to 90 million more men, women and children may be
pushed into poverty, in addition to the estimated 160 to 200 million people who
fell into poverty as a result of the food crisis between 2005 and 2008. Greater
poverty, and the hunger that it brings, will threaten the right to life and
health of many of these people, especiallychildren.
4.
The
rights of women are also particularly at risk, as unemployment and social
unrest can translateinto greater violence against women. Female workers, who
tend to be concentrated in the informal economy with lower wages and less
employment protection, are losing their jobs and incomes[22]
5.
Human
trafficking is expected to escalate as the economic crisis fuels poverty and
unemployment.
6.
Every
year during this crisis, about 400,000 more children will die before they reach
their fifth birthday simply because their families cannot afford food or basic
medical care for preventable diseases, according to estimates[23].
And the impact will be hardest in the poorest countries: “While people in
developed countries are feeling the impacts on their standards of living, their
jobs and their homes, people in developing countries are bearing the brunt of
the crisis, with few safety-nets to protect them from severe poverty and
deprivation, and without the fiscal capacity and space to soften the blow”
(ESCR-Net, 2009).
WAY OUT: PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS
1. Acknowledge
Human Rights:
The
believe in the existence of a thing forms a doctrine, a principle and
thereafter, a way of life. The principles of Human Rights should be accepted as
“existing” and regarded as such.
2. Respect
for Human Rights
This
does not only cover in the case of violition, but extends to the point where an
individual chooses not to go against the equal human rights of the other as
they have same. Let human rights be respected and upheld in society.
3. Protect
Human Rights
In the case that the humanrights of an
individual has been tampered with, proper shield should be made in reserves for
the abused party. It forms a wall of security as to subsequent actions that
could follow the abuse of human rights as it is a case that could be judged
locally (within Nigeria) or at the ICC- International Criminal Court.
4. Imbue
it in Economic and Fiscal Policies of State
The economic and fiscal policies of the
state should be intellectually arranged with the principlesof human rights
fully imbued therein. A policy that would build up economic strength, provide
landmark and satisfying living conditions would be loved by Nigerians.
CONCLUSION
As the
financial crisis has spilled over into the real economy, it has had, as we have
seen, devastating effects on lives and livelihoods across the world, especially
on the poorest people in the poorest countries, with women and children,
migrants and minorities bearing the brunt. The economic crisis threatens the
full range of human rights. It threatens not only economic, social and cultural
rights, including the right to an adequate standard of living and the rights to
health, housing, food and education, but also civil and political rights. It is
still too early to tell the full extent of the damage caused by the crisis, but
poor and low-income families across the world are being badly hit.
It is
therefore in the light of these aforementioned
REFERENCES
1. The
Spotlight on Sustainable Development 2016.
2. UNDP,
Human Development Report 2010: The Real Wealth of Nation, (New York; 2010).
3. Economy
watch, “Nigeria Economy”.
4. The International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
5. Constitution
of The Federal Republic of Nigeria (with Amendments 2011)
6. Social
Watch
[1]The
book, 1984 by George Orwell.
[2]National
Bureau of Statistics Report
[3]Article 3 (3).The Inter-American Democratic Charter, adopted
by the General Assembly of the Organisation of American States in 2001
[4]Declaration
on the right to Development.
[5]Article
1 of the Declaration on the right to Development.
[6]
Formerly, Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
[7]
The role of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
[8]Center
for Economic and Social Human Rights and the Financial Crisis (2009) page 3.
[10]
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy
[11]
Articles 6,7,8 of the ICESCR
[12]
Article 11 of the ICESCR
[13]
Article 12 of the ICESCR
[14]
Articles 13 and 14
[15]
Previously known as the United Nations Economic and Social Council
[16]
Articles 13 and 14
[17]
Article 2 of the ICESCR
[18]
S18 (3) CFRN as amended
[19]
F.A.O, 2009
[20]UN
Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing, 2009
[21]UN
Habitat, 2008
[22]I.L.O,2009b
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