Community Security Self-Help Initiative: A Panacea for Food Sustainability and Grassroot Development in Nigeria

Abstract

The research study examines the impact of community security self-help initiative and food security for grassroot development sustainability. Community self-help initiative is not a novel enterprise in communities in Nigeria as evidence abounds of how communities magnificently organized themselves in constructing roads, building bridges, schools, farmland assistance and neighbourhood watchdog to each other. The population of study is 351,865 from residence of Ikole, Efon and Emure local government areas of Ekiti State. A simple random probability sampling technique was deployed in sampling 450 respondents. Instrument of data collection was the Likert style questionnaire with 0.710 Cronbach Alpha reliability test. Simple percentage and Pearson correlation were two statistical tools deployed in the analysis of data derived from the field survey using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings of the study revealed that community security self-help initiatives have helped to abate communal insecurity and curtail herders from destroying crops thereby promoting agricultural sustainability which has led to food security in the communities sampled. The study recommends that an impeccable attention should be given to community security self-help initiatives by local and state governments as it remains the most veritable tool to curtail crime at the rural level and for promoting sustainable community development.

Key Words: Community; Food Security; Grassroot Development; Security; Self-help