Major Challenges To Development In Rural Africa And The Solutions (Essay Sample)

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MAJOR CHALLENGES TO DEVELOPMENT IN RURAL AFRICA AND THE SOLUTIONS
The definition of rural development has generated much debate with little consensus. The different definitions are as varied as to the understanding of development itself (Wu, 2003). However, all definitions have a central thought of sustained improvement of the living conditions or welfare of the people living in the rural areas. Rural development should not be viewed as an external intervention, but rather as a desire of the people living in rural areas to take the challenge of making their lives better and that of their environment. That having been said, it is important to point out that rural development has faced major challenges which include:
Limited Financial Resources Access
The majority of the people living in Africa rural areas have a limited access to financial services and the situation is compounded by many commercial banks not venturing into these areas as a result of poor infrastructure and low-income levels. According to Kloeppinger-Todd & Sharma, (2010), most of the households in rural areas lack access to affordable and reliable financial services. The lack of financial institutions in rural Africa has necessitated African governments to step in through state-owned banks that primarily focus on agriculture. Unfortunately, these efforts have backfired due to bureaucracy, weak customer focus and too policy oriented.
Rural financing is majorly concerned with the provision of financial resources that range from loans, credit money transfers to savings and insurance schemes to the rural population. The savings and insurance schemes assist in mitigating possible risks and also provide an opportunity to save for unforeseen occurrences. The loan services extended to the rural population provides a working capital enabling the people to seize economic opportunities.
Promoting rural financing should remain a top priority for governments, NGOs, and donors. Some of the ways of promoting rural financing are through supporting community-based saving groups and societies, assisting the poor households to access financial services and donors supporting the formulation, development of favorable policies and regulatory frameworks.
Increased Pressure on Natural Resources
More than 70% of Africa’s population are rural dwellers and largely depend on the natural resources for their livelihood. Rapid population growth has led to overexploitation of natural resources for both household and commercial products (Kowero, Campbell, & Sumaila, 2003). Similarly, a pronounced climate change impact has led to a surge in prevalence and severity of natural catastrophes. Fierce storms and floods have crumbled down the capacity of the rural population in Africa to anticipate, respond and revive following consecutive natural catastrophes. Any increase in natural disasters exacerbates the scramble to access and control the scanty resources which may occasion conflicts. Therefore, any increase in natural catastrophes jeopardizes development gains impeding the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the rural areas.
Unless the pressure on natural resources is addressed with an aim of easing it, the rural development project's sustainability will be seriously undermined and any attempts to eliminate poverty will be put in jeopardy. Agriculture is the main economic activity in the rural areas of Africa. Mostly the poor population is engaged in activities that directly put pressure on the natural resources which affect rural development. The provision of productive resources, credit facilities, and institutional services will turn the pressure from the natural resources hence, spurring rural development in many areas.
Underdeveloped Rural Infrastructure
Infrastructure development plays a vital role in both poverty and economic growth. Most countries in rural Africa suffer from poor infrastructure. Despite the formidable reality of both social and economic importance of rural infrastructure, necessary attention has not been accorded to this sector. The contribution of infrastructure to the per capita economic growth was 99 basis points across Africa in the period between 1990 and 2005 (Foster & Briceño-Garmendia, 2010). Weak telecommunication infrastructure leads to over concentration of technology in the urban areas hampering the rural SMEs participation in rural development (Maumbe & Okello, 2013).
Rural infrastructure plays a pivotal role in poverty reduction, economic growth and empowerment of the African rural population. Every household is touched by the lack of adequate and reliable infrastructure and therefore, becomes a critical determinant of the progress of rural development. African governments should prioritize improving and investing in new and existing infrastructure to support the expansion all socio-economic activities that contribute to rural development. In addition, innovative approaches to financing while partnering with the private sector in order to mobilize the extensive rural infrastructure.
Rural-Urban Migration
Migration from rural to urban areas is as a result of both economic and non-economic factors. However, it is important to point out that there is a general consensus that migrations are primarily motivated by economic reasons (Adepoju, 2008). In addition, Sanders (2005), suggests that migration from rural areas to urban areas is a survival strategy. The rural population seeks to escape the social, economic and political challenges that they come face to face with in the rural areas. The movements have occasioned a detrimental effect on the general development of rural areas in Africa. The rate of development in rural areas is slowed down since the younger generation who provide labor force relocate in pursuit of better prospects leaving behind the aged people whose productivity is much reduced in comparison to the youth. The education system has also contributed to the rural-urban migration due to a mismatch between skills imparted and the labor market (Abdi, Puplampu, & Dei, 2006).
Since lack of productive employment is a leading cause of the rural-urban influx, measures should be taken to create more job opportunities both agricultural and non-agricultural to stem the migration tide. Because the major occupation in the rural areas of most African countries is agriculture, governments should invest in promoting agriculture through the provision of quality planting seeds, fertilizers, storage facilities and facilitating the marketing of the produce (Isaac & Raqib, 2013). Through these initiatives, the agricultural activity will become more lucrative attracting more of the rural people who would have otherwise opted to move to towns.
African governments should formulate and implement appropriate policies and reforms that are targeted at enhancing the income of the rural poor by giving impetus to the many activities associated with rural development. However, these measures will serve no good if economic benefits do not trickle down to every person in the rural areas. Much more, in order to spur rural development, respective governments should seek to encourage investments by the corporate sector through offering tax rebates and incentives. Rural development should be part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Poverty and Social Exclusion
Social exclusion is a concept which describes marginalization and prevention from participating in processes that will spur growth and development. Poverty reduction strategies have often failed in reaching the socially excluded people because they are not designed to do so in the first place (Department of International Development, 2005).Rural development is characterized by a social equity aspect. Low incomes, high unemployment rates, and educational disparities are a common occurrence in the rural population living in poverty. Families with one or both heads unemployed or without a steady income are at greater risk of suffering from the effects of poverty. Poverty and social exclusion are further compounded by low educational levels. The problems of isolation, marginalization, and economic dependency are further aggravated by the widening gap or absence of social services and amenities.
Poverty and social exclusion are not mutually independent, hence the poor are often sidelined (International Labour Organization, 2008). Usually, exclusion is more indirect and unintentional. A good example is an exclusion of the physically challenged people from political involvement, markets, and services due to lack of information. In order to address this challenge to rural development, there needs to be concerted efforts from different stakeholders.
Governments should formulate policies and laws that will address the long ingrained discriminatory patterns and poverty causes. The laws should seek to ban any discriminatory practices an...