POLITICS AND SCARCITY: UNPACKING RESOURCE ALLOCATION DYNAMICS IN NIGERIAN HIGHER EDUCATION
Keywords:
Resource allocation, Nigerian universities, higher education, organizational politics, decision-making, committees, efficiency, transparency, equity, biasAbstract
Resource allocation in Nigerian higher education institutions has long been a pressing issue, with inadequate funding being a major concern. Despite the UNESCO recommendation of allocating a minimum of 26% of annual budget to education, Nigeria allocates only 6% to 7% for higher education. This study delves into the complex and politically charged landscape of resource allocation in Nigerian universities, where meager resources are distributed among various units, departments, and individuals. The allocation of resources is not only a managerial challenge but also a subject of intense research.
The allocation of a mere 0.76% of Gross National Product (GNP) to the education sector in Nigeria pales in comparison to Sub-Saharan African and OECD countries. As a result, resource allocation becomes a multifaceted issue intertwined with political and sentimental considerations. Various specialized boards, committees, and ad-hoc committees are employed by universities to allocate resources efficiently. However, the decisions made by these committees have often been influenced by organizational politics, leading to issues of inequity, tribalism, and bias.
Nigerian universities heavily rely on committees for decision-making across a wide range of activities including policy formulation, resource management, staff recruitment, and research implementation. While these committees are intended to promote efficiency and transparency, they are sometimes plagued by corruption, power struggles, and bias, ultimately affecting the fair distribution of resources.
This study aims to explore the impact of organizational politics on resource allocation decisions within Nigerian universities. The scarcity of resources within the institutions creates a power struggle where political factors such as ethnicity, religion, and partisan considerations come into play. These dynamics often lead to preferences and discriminations in resource distribution, influencing who benefits and who loses. The study seeks to shed light on the intricate relationship between organizational politics and resource allocation decisions and provide insights into the strategies employed by university stakeholders to influence resource distribution.
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