Abstract

This paper examined poverty-conflict nexus within the Nigerian setting. The phenomenon of poverty has become so endemic in Nigeria to the extent that all recent statistics point in the direction that a greater proportion of the Nigerian population lives in poverty. High poverty rate in Nigeria has been attributed to a number of factors including inept leadership that breeds monumental corruption in all facets of life. Corruption ensures that the wealth of the nation is not equitably distributed among its citizens leadingto very high level of inequality. Few people have appropriated far more than their fair of the commonwealth thereby pushing the majority of the people to the margin of society. Poverty in Nigeria has been exacerbated by the fact that the poor do not have any voice in the political process. This situation generates massive frustration within the population that also leads to varying degrees of conflict. The paper therefore contends that the numerous conflict situations and violent criminal activities witnessed frequently in Nigeria are directly linked to poverty.