Judicial Enforcement of Socioeconomic Rights in Nigeria: An Empirical Analysis of Supreme Court Decisions from 2018 to 2024

This study provides an empirical analysis of Nigerian Supreme Court decisions on socioeconomic rights from 2018 to 2024, filling a critical gap in scholarship concerning the justiciability and judicial enforcement of second-generation rights in Nigeria. Although the 1999 Constitution classifies socioeconomic rights as non-justiciable fundamental objectives under Chapter II, landmark judgments by Nigerian courts and the influence of international human rights treaty obligations have progressively complicated this categorical exclusion. The research employs a mixed doctrinal and empirical methodology, systematically analyzing all Supreme Court decisions touching on education, health, housing, water, and food rights within the study period, coding outcomes by type of judicial reasoning, extent of enforcement, and remedial orders granted. The study further benchmarks Nigerian judicial approaches against South Africa's Constitutional Court jurisprudence on socioeconomic rights. Theoretical grounding is provided by the minimum core obligations doctrine and the progressive realization standard under the ICESCR. Findings reveal an emerging pattern of indirect enforcement through fundamental rights provisions, yet no clear doctrinal framework has crystallized. The research identifies an enforcement gap attributable to weak structural interdict jurisprudence and inadequate institutional follow-through by government agencies on judicial orders. Recommendations include constitutional amendment to bring Chapter II rights within the justiciable framework, and development of judicial guidelines for complex socioeconomic rights remediation. Keywords: socioeconomic rights, judicial enforcement, Supreme Court, justiciability, Nigeria.