Abstract

Nigeria is the largest black nation in the world She is also the 6th oil producing country across the globe However Nigeria has one of the largest people living in poverty Reports have indicated that more than 60 of the Nigerian population could be characterized with poverty In spite of differing poverty intervention program both the government and private agencies poverty and inequality in Nigeria still wax in a sporadic trend From Operation Feed the Nation to the recent You WIN program Nigeria s development program seems conflictualwith the dreams of collective poor Similarly the presence of unresolved contradictions between subjective and relative poverty perceptions among the Nigerian people relatively contributes immensely as well as contradicts the path-ways towards poverty reduction Hence despite government measures at reducing poverty lackluster strategic intents ultimately inhibits among others health care delivery andsecurity of lives in Nigeria Could poverty persistence have been attributed to policy imperfections Weak political will Or individual perceptions of inequality The contribution of this paper therefore is entrenched in systemic analysis of rationale behind policy imperfections in the quest for poverty reductions in Nigeria using NEEDS as a point of reference However the paper argues that for Nigeria to adequately address poverty agenda as one of the pointers of millennium development goals by 2015 pro-poor strategic policy reformation remains imperative