RANKING OF INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT AND ITS EFFECT ON POVERTY REDUCTION IN ONDO CITY, NIGERIA
Keywords:
Electricity reliability, Infrastructural development, Nigeria, Ondo City, Poverty reduction, Road connectivity, WASH services.Abstract
This study examines the relationship between infrastructural development and poverty reduction in Ondo City, Nigeria, with a particular focus on how
households rank different infrastructure sectors and how these perceptions align with poverty outcomes. Using primary survey data collected from 300 households, the study integrates descriptive analysis with econometric modelling to capture the welfare relevance of infrastructure ranking from the perspective of lived household experiences. Non-income poverty is measured using a Principal
Component Analysis (PCA)-based index constructed from indicators of education, health, road, and electricity deprivation, while monetary poverty is proxied using households’ self-reported income changes. The core explanatory variables are households' perceived rankings of road, electricity, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure. The results reveal that perceived improvements in electricity and road infrastructure are significantly associated with lower income poverty in the study area. In contrast, WASH infrastructure perceptions are shown to display an insignificant association with poverty. The findings demonstrate that households’ perceptions of infrastructure are closely aligned with tangible welfare outcomes, and that infrastructure sectors imposing frequent and visible economic constraints are ranked as most poverty-reducing. It is therefore recommended that poverty-oriented infrastructure strategies in Ondo City prioritise electricity and roads, among others.
