GLOBALISATION AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC HERITAGE OF THE JUKUN-KONA PEOPLE IN TARABA STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study examines the socio- economic heritage of the Jukun- Kona people in Taraba State, Nigeria, through the lens of modernisation theory, which conceptualises development as a transition from traditional socio- economic structures to more complex, market- oriented, and technologically driven systems. Situating the Jukun- Kona within expanding processes of globalisation, the paper analyses how integration into wider markets, state- led development initiatives, formal education, and infrastructural expansion has transformed indigenous livelihood systems, land tenure arrangements, and community authority structures. While modernisation has facilitated new opportunities for mobility, trade, and access to services, it has also disrupted agrarian production patterns, weakened communal institutions, and accelerated cultural dislocation. The shift from subsistence- based and collectively regulated economies toward individualised and monetised relations has reproduced inequalities, marginalised local knowledge systems, and heightened youth precarity. By critically engaging modernisation theory, the study demonstrates that development outcomes are neither linear nor uniformly beneficial, highlighting the uneven and contested consequences of global integration for minority communities. It argues for context- sensitive pathways that reconcile socioeconomic transformation with the preservation of indigenous heritage and social cohesion.