Nigeria’s development process, methodology and milestones planned for VISION 20:2020 - 13 years after How has Nigeria performed in the area of human resource development and a knowledge-based economy?

Abstract

Amidst various reforms agenda, policies, development plans and programmes, Vision 2010, Seven-Point Agenda and a host of others, Nigerian leaders have articulated the Vision 20:2020, which targets to catapult Nigeria into the league of the first global 20 economies by the year 2020. This article focuses only on the second pillar of Nigerian vision 2020 which is “Human resources development and knowledgebased economy” and compare recent development indicators for Nigeria with those of advanced countries, the first 20 of which Nigeria aspired to join this year (2020). In contrast to the situation in highincome OECD nations, the vast majority of Nigerians are ill-fed, ill-clothed, ill-housed and ill-educated. They live in the rural areas characterized by massive underdevelopment. Poverty is the basic malady of Nigeria which is involved in misery-go-round, as part of the slum of the world economy. Nigeria's Vision 20:2020 is, therefore, too ambitious. Furthermore, against the backdrop of the antecedents of policy reversals, summersaults and failures in Nigeria, the Vision is utopian. Recommendations include commitment of the leadership to sufficient discipline and political will to enforce development policies and programmes.