THE IMPACT OF INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITIES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF NNEWI

Abstract

Often it is believed that there is a nexus between industrialization and development. Some development theorists are of the view that industrialization leads to increase in wealth and would definitely flow down to the larger population. Their opinion is that if a nation wants to develop it should industrialize, and thus they argue that the transition from a traditional to modern society can be explained as a rise in the rate of investment to a point that is more than population growth. On the other hand there are others who have challenged this view on the grounds that industrialization is not the same as development, and that output can expand without meeting the basic needs of the population. They further questioned this view, without necessarily rejecting the idea that industrialization is necessary for development but their definitions of development often include attention to basic needs such as decent health-care, education, income for all, and environmental sustainability and not industrialization alone. Hence these yardsticks question the view that industrialization and development are the same thing, although they do not necessarily undermine the view that there is a close correlation between the two. Therefore, this work is aimed at determining which of these two schools of thought is valid regarding Nnewi, which has been an industrial hub for about six decades now. It would ascertain whether or not the industrial activities in Nnewi have impacted on the development of the city in any way and the extent it has, if it has.