MODERATING ROLE OF GOOD GOVERNANCE ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INTERVENTION PROGRAMS, POLICY PARTICIPATION AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION: A PLS APPROACH

Abstract

Poverty is one of the greatest threats to global peace and a topical topic of discussion in the
development agenda. In an effort to break the cycle of poverty, governments at different
levels introduced various intervention schemes to combat the scourge. This paper adopts
quantitative technique using Partial Least Square (PLS) to examine the moderating effects of
good governance on two intervention programs (IPs), participation of target beneficiaries in
policy formulation and implementation and poverty alleviation. The findings highlight that
National Fadama Development Project III is significantly related to poverty alleviation and
most beneficial to the target beneficiaries. However, the relationship between Niger State
Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme and poverty alleviation was insignificant.
Correspondingly, the introduction of good governance in the study will strengthen the
affiliation between IPs and poverty reduction if there is effective participation of recipients of
IPs in policies, periodic accountability of stakeholders and application of rule of law. The
study shows that manifold intervention programs are linked with compound challenges,
hence, the study recommends for the synchronization of the couple programs to curb the
waste of scarce resource and accord it a required devotion. Good governance is the key to
poverty alleviation, therefore, government should engender coherent vision and concrete
commitment administratively, politically and professionally to realize it. Specifically, the
study calls for the transformation and reinforcement of the judicial institutions to combat
corruption and lead a crusade for the reinstatement of the good virtues entrenched in the
public service to enhance a hitch free application of rule of law as a stepping stone to expedite
economic development and poverty alleviation in Niger state.