Adult Education and Social Capital Formation in Rural Communities in Ogun State

This study examines the relationship between adult education programme participation and social capital formation in rural communities in Ogun State, South West Nigeria. Social capital, encompassing networks of trust, reciprocity, and collective action, is a critical community asset for development. Adult education programmes that bring community members together in shared learning settings are theorised to build bonding and bridging social capital as a positive externality of educational participation. Ogun State's diverse rural communities provide a useful setting for examining these dynamics across different agro-ecological and socioeconomic contexts. This study uses a quasi-experimental design with a community-level matched comparison approach, comparing social capital levels in 10 communities with active adult education programmes against 10 matched communities without such programmes in Abeokuta South, Ijebu East, and Yewa North local government areas. Social capital is measured using the World Bank Integrated Questionnaire for the Measurement of Social Capital adapted for the Ogun State context, covering network membership, trust in neighbours, cooperation in collective activities, and civic participation. Difference-in-differences estimation is applied. Findings reveal significant positive programme community effects on cooperative association membership, trust in community institutions, and participation in collective resource management activities. Women participants show stronger social capital formation effects than men, particularly in bridging network formation. The study concludes that adult education generates measurable social capital formation benefits in Ogun State rural communities. It recommends that adult education programme impact measurement systems routinely include social capital indicators.

Keywords: social capital, adult education, rural communities, Ogun State, community development.