THE IMPACT OF FOREIGN AID ON HEALTH OUTCOMES IN NIGERIA ( A STUDY OF FOREIGN AIDS, INFANT MORTALITY AND MATERNAL MORTALITY )

This study examines the impact of foreign aid on health outcomes in Nigeria between 1980 and 2023. it aims to evaluate the effectiveness of foreign aid programs in reducing infant and maternal mortality in facilitating the impact of foreign aid and assess the influence of governance and political stability on the success of foreign aid programs. The research utilizes a quantitative approach, employing secondary data from reputable sources such as the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Nigerian Ministry of Health. An ex-post facto research design is applied, as it enables the analysis of historical data to determine the relationship between foreign aid, infant and maternal mortality without manipulating variables. The study focuses on Nigeria,, which despite receiving significant foreign aid, continues to face high infant and maternal mortality rates. The data includes information on foreign aid received for health-related interventions, infant and maternal mortality rates, government health expenditure and socio-economic factors such as poverty and education. The analysis employs descriptive statistics, ANOVA (Analysis of Variance), T-test and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression to test the hypotheses and analyze the relationship between foreign aid ,infant and maternal mortality. The findings show that foreign aid has a significant negative impact on infant and maternal mortality, particularly in health programs such as immunization and maternal health. Based on these findings, the study recommends enhancing the coordination of foreign aid programs, strengthening governance and increasing healthcare investments to optimize the impact of foreign aid in reducing infant and maternal mortality in Nigeria and ensuring improvements in health outcomes.