Abstract

Since the 1980s, the peace and unity that characterized traditional Nigerian families have been challenged by the multiplier effects of Austerity, and its handmaiden the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP). Nigerian families have come under severe threat as a result of the persistent austere economic conditions and its corollary, erosion of African family values. The paper interrogates the nexus between pervasive family crises aggravated by low family status and debilitating austere economic conditions. The paper contends that pro-poor families in Nigeria have been torn asunder and are no longer nests of love, but centres of conflict. It calls for a review of the austere policies in Nigeria that have made hitherto poor, but peaceful, families’ crisis prone.

Key words: Austerity, Structural Adjustment Programme, family crises.