The Theories of Community Development: Lessons from a Rural Community in Ekiti State, Nigeria

Comfort Wuraola Adeyemo (Department of Adult Education and Community Development, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti)
Gladys Modupe Kayode (Department of Adult Education and Community Development, Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti)

Budapest International Research and Critics in Linguistics and Education Journal (Birle Journal)
Vol 3, No 1 (2020): Budapest International Research and Critics in Linguistics and Education, Februa

The study examined the various development theories and concepts that have guided the community development practices. These concepts examined included the notion of community development, participation, empowerment and mobilization, and how they inform one another in terms of practice with particular reference to Irasa, a predominantly agrarian community in Ekiti State, Nigeria. An instrument tagged ‘Questionnaire on Development’ was used to obtain information from 30 randomly selected respondents. Results obtained revealed that Community Development Projects (CDPs) could be exploited for the provisions of basic amenities to enhance the quality of life of community dwellers. The involvement of all stakeholders in CDPs planning, implementation and sustainability was obtained. These attributes contributed to the successful implementations of several CDPs in the community. This bottom-up approach tends to suggest the use of modernization theory in Irasa community, the study area.