Abstract:In this study we aimed at answering the question, 'Does agriculture matter for economic development in Nigeria?' Life expectancy is modeled against agricultural output and agricultural expenditure, amongst other variables. Agricultural output is also modeled against a host of socioeconomic, natural and human factors, which influence agricultural productivity. Applying Augmented Dickey-Fuller unit root test, Ordinary Least Squares, and the Newey-West method on secondary data and dummy variable used in the study, it was found that agricultural output has negative and significant impact on life expectancy in Nigeria. The impact of agricultural expenditure was found to be positive but nonsignificant. Real gross domestic product and industrial output were also found to influence life expectancy. Careful examination of the hypothesized socioeconomic factors (political instability and industrial output), natural factor (rainfall), and human factor (carbon emission) showed that only industrial output and rainfall matter for agricultural output in the country: both variables have positive impacts on agricultural output. The study submits that as much as agriculture may matter for economic development, reliance on the sector alone without corresponding and simultaneous development of other crucial sectors such as education, health, and industry will not yield positive fruits for economic development in Nigeria. JEL Classifications: O13, Q14

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Capital Flight has long been recognized as a problem for developing nations. Savings gap in some of these nations has widened over the years due to rising Capital Flight. This has limped domestic investment growth, employment creation and poverty alleviation. With these in view, this study seeks to underscore the socio-economic determinants of Capital Flight in Nigeria. Approaching the study, two measures of Capital Flight (hot money method and residual method) are modeled against a number of socio-economic factors identified in the literature. Fully Modified Ordinary Least Square, Seemingly Unrelated Regression and Error Correction Mechanism are employed to sieve out the significant determinants of Capital Flight in Nigeria. Amongst the host, only lagged Capital Flight, fiscal balance and exchange rate are found to be the significant determinants of Capital Flight in the country. The study concludes that unless sound macroeconomic measures are taken to address these factors, Capital Flight will remain high in Nigeria. Domestic investment will remain very low. Poverty levels will remain high, and the quest for economic development will remain elusive. The key out of Nigeria's colossal savings gap is keeping domestic capital at home. This is achievable using the strategies discussed in the study.

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Privatisation is often seen as the key to achieving efficiency in infrastructure service delivery. In most cases, however, the model of privatisation and the right institutional environment under which they perform best are ignored in addressing the privatisation-to-efficiency debate. Recognising this, we seek to underscore the contractual and institutional factors influencing infrastructure post-privatisation efficiency in Landlord port models as applied in Nigeria's port reform. In so doing, the study explores the Landlord port privatisation model in Nigeria. The paired t-test and Wilcoxon signed rank sum test are employed to determine if there are significant improvements in port output (general cargo throughput, liquid bulk throughput, number of vessels, gross registered tonnage and container traffic) and efficiency (average waiting time, turnaround time, berth occupancy rate) proxies between the pre-concession, transition and post-concession periods in Nigeria. The result of these tests indicates that although there are significant improvements in the port output proxies, efficiency in the port did not improve Article at GEORGIAN COURT UNIV on April 11, 2015 joi.sagepub.com Downloaded from 122 Bongo Adi et al. Journal of Infrastructure Development, 5, 2 (2013): 121-135significantly. The study identified lack of appropriate legal framework, weak regulatory capacity, absence of efficiency targets in concession contract and non-adherence to investment targets as the major constraints to efficiency gain in the Landlord port model. JEL Classification: R4, L9, O47