Socio-economic costs of Security Services Outsourcing in Selected Institutions in Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract

The transition of campus security services to outsourced services, occasioned by 2005 Nigeria’s national policy on public service reform, created problems about its form, content and context. Previous studies on Security Services Outsourcing (SSO) concentrated more on the Information Communications Technology aspect without commensurate attention on the socio-economic costs of human security services. This study examined the socio-economic costs of SSO in the Federal Tertiary Educational Institutions (FTEIs) in Ogun State, Nigeria. The conflict perspective was adopted as the framework while the design was survey. Multistage sampling method, which consisted of purposive, stratified and random sampling techniques, was used. The Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta; Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro and; Federal College of Education, Abeokuta were utilised for the study. Questionnaires were administered on 783 respondents selected through stratified and random sampling methods. Eight Key Informant Interviews and eight In-Depth Interviews were conducted with the management and stakeholders in each of the FTEIs. The socio-economic costs of SSO included engagement of police personnel during examinations, recruitment of non-professional security personnel and divided loyalty. The security services of the FTEIs were constrained by the manifest and latent socio-economic costs. The study recommended that the outsourcing policy be comprehensively reviewed.