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Acknowledgements This research was made possible by a grant from the Global Service Institute (GSI) of the Center for Social Development, Washington University in St Louis, Missouri, with funding from the Ford Foundation. I am indebted to several colleagues , including Dr Wale Adebanwi, Olawale Ismail, Dr Gbemisola Adeoti, Christopher Ankersen, and Dr Attahiru Jega who assisted me in various ways during the field research for the study. I also would like to acknowledge the assistance of staff at the Centre for Democracy and Development, UK, especially Dr Kayode Fayemi and Morten Hagen. My special appreciation goes to Professor Sola Akinrinade, who encouraged me at the beginning and helped in the development of the proposal for the study. For their critical comments, I am grateful to participants at the International Symposium on Civic Service: Impacts and Inquiry , held at Knight Center, George Washington University, St Louis, Missouri in September 2003. Finally, this research would not have been possible without the generosity of the entire staff of the Global Service Institute, Center for Social Development, George Washington University in St Louis, in particular Professor Michael Sherraden, Dr Amanda Moore McBride and Carlos Benitez who all assisted me greatly and provided necessary clarification at different stages of my investigation. ...

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