Abstract:
Nigeria is blessed tremendously and generously with huge economic resources such as crude oil,
cocoa, rubber and gold, etc. Despite all these natural resources, it is really lamentable to see millions
of Nigerians still living in absolute poverty in recent times. This paper examines the impact of
government sectorial expenditure on poverty reduction in Nigeria using time series data over the
period 1990-2021. Employing modem time series econometric techniques such as unit root tests,
bound test co-integration approach and error correction techniques within an ARDL framework
which yields more robust estimates. It is found that government spending on Agriculture and
Education affect poverty rate negatively and significant. On the other hand Government spending
on Community development also has a negative relationship with poverty. Findings emerge from
this paper that government expenditure has significant short run and longrun impact on poverty
reductions in its lag form in which it might be examined by the role of fiscal policy in alleviating
poverty of current year in Nigeria. The paper recommend more funding in the Agriculture sector
should be directed toward the provision of machinery, seedlings, andfertilizer, increased production,
the government should create an enabling market where farmers may sell their produce at a fair
price, The federal government should raise its education budget to provide educational materials,
equipment, and a welcoming atmosphere for both staff and students, as well as improve skill
acquisition equipment in technical schools to promote human capital development and self¬
employment, The federal government should raise its education budget to provide educational
materials, equipment, and a welcoming atmosphere for both staff and students, as well as improve
skill acquisition equipment in technical schools to promote human capital development and self¬
employment.
