SOCIO-CULTURAL ENVIRONMENTS OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN NIGERIA: CHALLENGES AND WAY FORWARD

Society consists of many interdependent and interacting parts. Administration is one of such interdependent and interacting parts of the society. Administration, which is expected to administer the affairs of the society through government and semi-government agencies, has meaning not only in the context of the social setting but in the cultural setting as well. The administrators are drawn from the society and they bring with them the social values they acquire through the socialization process in the social institutions like the school, family, associations, religion etc. The socio-cultural factors greatly influence the nature of administration. Through cultural dimensions theory, developed by Hofstede, this study attempt to find out why the negative synthesis of failure is persisting in the Nigeria administrative machinery especially from the angle of the impact of cultural factors on administration and on the citizens themselves. It was revealed in this study that, administrative behaviour is influenced by the values cherished by that society. The study suggest that, Conscious and intentional efforts are necessary to bring about the required changes in the existing cultures. These initiatives might involve social campaigns, education, and continuous training proper enthronement of democratic practices together with a just and an impartial administrative operation.