Participatory development is the most important approach towards enabling
communities to help themselves and sustain efforts in development work.
Communities are no longer seen as recipients of development programmes; rather,
they have become critical stakeholders that have an important role to play in the
management of programmes and projects in their areas. This study evaluates the
effect of community participation towards the development of the sub-urban areas in
Akure South Local Government Area, Ondo State, Nigeria. Data were collected with
the aid of structured questionnaire administered to 200 community leaders/residents
in 22 communities and 10 Staffs in the Ministry of Community Development and Cooperative
Societies. A simple random sampling technique was employed in the
selection and data analysis was by the use of descriptive statistics. Findings revealed
that most projects carried out within the sub-urban area are usually of low standard
when compared with that provided by the government; it was also discovered that for
a project to be more effective, there must be joint participation of both the community
members and the government. Based on the findings of the study it was recommended
among others that in order to intensify participation in community development, reeducation
and re-orientation programmes should be organized by the government
which will educate the citizenry on the necessity to participate fully in the
development of their neighbourhood themselves through self-help activities since the
government cannot satisfy the immediate needs of all the communities within its
jurisdiction at a goal.