VISION 20:2020 AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA: GLEANING FROM PAST NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLANS

Development planning has been the main strategy used by countries to set their D visions, missions, goals, and effective means of realizing development. In Nigeria, development planning has been a consistent phenomenon since 1946 and resources have been deployed to ensure a sustainable economic growth and development using the instrumentality of national development plan framework. This paper appraised the Nigeria's Vision 20:2020 as a developmental framework for Nigeria against the backdrop of historical antecedents of policy reversals, summersaults and failures in Nigeria. Past National development plans covering 1960 to 2013 were analyzed. The paper discussed the challenges that may hinder the successful implementation of Nigeria's Vision 20:2020 based on past experiences and made useful suggestions to overcome them. However, a disciplined, strong and committed leadership and development of a result-based national monitoring and evaluation framework are required for a successful implementation of Nigeria's Vision 20:2020.