Foreign Aid Dependency and the Politics of Development in the African Economy
Adegoke John ADERINTO, Ph. D, Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Federal University, Lokoja.
Samson Ikoh JOSEPH, Department of Public Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences, University of Abuja, Nigeria.
MSI Journal of Economics and Business Management (MSIJEBM) | DOI https://zenodo.org/records/18509777 | Page 01 to 25
Abstract
Foreign aid has remained a dominant feature of development financing in many African economies, yet its persistence raises fundamental questions about policy autonomy, development politics, and long-term economic outcomes. This paper examines foreign aid dependency and the politics of development in the African economy with the objective of analysing the extent and patterns of aid dependency, the role of political processes and donor influence in shaping development policies, and the implications of sustained reliance on external assistance for economic sovereignty and development outcomes in Africa. The study is anchored in Dependency Theory, which provides a structural explanation for how external financial flows shape domestic economic and political arrangements in aid-dependent states. Using a qualitative methodology based on extensive review and synthesis of empirical studies, policy reports, and comparative African case evidence, the paper interrogates how foreign aid operates within political and institutional contexts. The findings reveal that foreign aid remains deeply embedded in public finance systems of many African countries, significantly influencing development priorities and policy choices through conditionalities and donor-driven agendas. While aid has contributed to improvements in selected social indicators, particularly in health and humanitarian sectors, it has had limited impact on structural transformation, domestic revenue mobilisation, and industrial development. The study concludes that sustained foreign aid dependency constrains economic sovereignty, weakens state–society accountability, and reinforces vulnerability to external shocks. It therefore recommends strengthened domestic resource mobilisation, strategic use of aid to support productive sectors, and closer alignment of donor support with nationally defined development priorities to reduce dependency and promote sustainable development in Africa.
Keywords: Foreign aid, Aid dependency, Politics of development, African economy, Dependency theory.
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Relationship Between the Administrative Strategies and Effective Implementation of Social Responsibility in Public Universities in Rivers State.
Osuji, Catherine U., Department of Educational Management Faculty of Education, Rivers State University Port-Harcourt.
ANWURI-OWHOJI, Princess Nnwerendah, Department of Educational Management Faculty of Education, Rivers State University Port-Harcourt.
MSI Journal of Economics and Business Management (MSIJEBM) | DOI https://zenodo.org/records/18477840 | Page 01 to 18
Abstract
This study examined relationship between the administrative strategies and implementation of social responsibility in public universities in Rivers State. The study was guided by three research objectives from which three research questions were posed and six hypotheses were tested. The study adopted a correlational survey design with a population of 93 principal officers and management staff of the three public universities in Rivers State. The sample size of the study was 93 principal officers and management staff of the three public universities in Rivers State. The entire population was studied as census without sampling. The instruments for data collection were self-designed questionnaires titled: Administrative Strategies Questionnaire” (ASQ) and “Effective Implementation of Social Responsibility Questionnaire” (EISRQ). respectively. The instruments were validated by the researcher’s supervisor, one expert in Educational Management, and one other expert in Measurement and Evaluation. The internal consistencies of the instruments were determined using the Cronbach Alpha method. Reliability coefficients of 0.88, 0.72, 0.87, 0.81, 0.80, 0.88 and 0.76 were obtained for the various clusters of the instrument. The research questions were answered and the hypotheses tested using Pearson Product Moment Correlation statistics. The hypotheses were further subjected to t-transformation to establish the significance of the r-value at 0.05 level of significance. The result of the analyzed data revealed among others that respondents were of the opinion that There is a high and positive relationship between alignment of institutional goals with social needs, promoting stakeholders’ engagement and effective implementation of social responsibility in public universities in Rivers State. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others that Universities should invest in developing more sophisticated and effective participatory governance mechanisms.
All articles published by MSIP are made immediately available worldwide under an open access license. No special permission is required to reuse all or part of any MSIP article, including figures and tables.
For articles published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, any part of the article may be reused for any purpose, including commercial use, provided that the original MSIP article is clearly cited.
