Assessment of the Effects of Urbanization on Housing Condition in Ciroma Ward of Lafia Town, Nasarawa State

Assessment of the Effects of Urbanization on Housing Condition in Ciroma Ward of Lafia Town, Nasarawa State

Bashayi Obadiah, Benson Polycarp and Hamza Hassan Usman

Department of Urban Regional Planning, Isa Mustapha Agwai I Polytechnic, Lafia

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2023.7930

Received: 20 May 2023; Revised: 06 June 2023; Accepted: 20 June 2023; Published: 23 September 2023

ABSTRACT

Urbanization is a phenomenon which is observed all over the world both in developed and developing nations. Urbanization comes with both the positives and negative consequences. The effects of urbanization on housing condition are observed in most town and cities. Therefore, this study seeks to investigate the effect on housing conditions in Lafia town. To carry out the research the study adopted the descriptive design and the study population consisted of the household dwelling units of 15,898. Sample size was determined using Frankforth-Nachiamias which stated that 1% sample is enough for large population for a research to achieve maximum collection for analysis. Therefore, sample size of 1% was adopted for this study which consisting of 159 questionnaires administered. Data were collected through observation and structured questionnaires. Systematic randomly sampling was adopted in the selection of population from the sampling frame. The data collected were analysed using simple statistics and inferential statistics was employed. To further rank the effect of urbanization on housing condition a mean ranking analysis was used. The findings revealed that the structural and aesthetic conditions of 65.5% of the houses are in various degree of dilapidation. It was revealed that 68% of the environmental facilities are in bad conditions and   of houses are poorly maintained. The result of ranking of effect of urbanization on housing condition revealed that solid waste ranked first and difficulty in assessing land ranked last. The study recommends for the upgrading of dwelling unit, condition and infrastructure facilities. The study concluded that urbanization has both negative and positive impact; therefore, it properly managed will bring about economic and social development.

Keywords: Urbanization, House, Housing, Housing condition and Housing quality

INTRODUCTION

Urbanization is phenomenon which is observed all over the world whether nation is developed or developing (Mukiibi, 2013).It is highly influenced by the notion that cities and towns have achieved better economic, political, and social mileages compared to rural areas. Cities are growing very fast, in terms of population as well as size, spreading beyond municipal jurisdiction. More than half of the world’s population lives in urban areas. More towns are now getting converted in to cities (Petkar, Macwan, Dhiraj, &Takkekar, 2012).

Africa is also becoming more urbanized continent where cities both large and small will harbor the majority of the population (Nelago, 2015). More than 40% of Africa’s population is urban and African countries are at the moment urbanizing at more than 4% annually as 43 cities, against 28 cities in 1995, has more than a thousand population as at 2005. It is expected than by 2015, the number of the populated cities would have risen to 59. Over the past two decades, total urban population in Africa has increased from 413 million at 40% in 2010 to 569 million at 45% (Olarewaju and Oviasogie, 2019). It is projected that this proportion will increase to 60%, i.e. 1.23 billion by 2050 (UN-Habitat, 2009). The level and spatial distribution of population and urbanization varied from region to region, counties to countries and cities to city.

Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated using World Bank population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects. According to Jacob (2014) and World Bank (2022), Nigeria is remarkable for its high percentage of urbanization. For instance, the annual rates of urbanization in Nigeria for period 1960-2021 shows continuous increase of urban population; in 1960 urban population is 6,923,458 at 15.41%, in 1970 is 9,869,101 at 17.76%, in 1980 is 16,027,431 at 21.97%, in 1990 is 28,259,591 at 29.68%, in 2000 is 42,801,631 at 34.84%, in 2010 is 69,982,300 at 43.48%, in 2020 is 108,242,753 at 51.96% and in 2021 is 112,560,662 at 52.75%. These were the periods of the oil boom and expansion in public expenditure. Abuja and Port Harcourt in Nigeria are cities with high fragility rates, are ticking along at 6.2% and 5.1% respectively (Muggah and Kilesllen, 2016). Consequently, urbanization in most of the Nigeria is characterized by a growing gap between employment opportunities and demand, and an ever increasing shortage of urban services and facilities which are accessible to a diminishing share of urban population. The implication is the deplorable and alarming situation which aggravates the already acute housing problem. The population growth results in overcrowding increased pressure on infrastructural facilities and the rapid deterioration of housing and living conditions.

The condition of urban housing is a significant parameter for assessing the status of an urban area. The ability of an urban setting to meet up with the need of its inhabitants depends largely on the availability, adequacy and effectiveness of infrastructural facilities including the condition of its housing. Adekola (2016) asserted that it is naturally expected that cities and towns that have large number of population squeezed in small space suffer from overcrowding. This problem is specifically more acute in urban areas where there is large influx of unemployed and underemployed immigrants who have no place to live in.

Rapid population growth of the city is increasing the number of people searching for accommodation daily. Much of this population growth has its root in rural-urban migration owing to large groups of people flooding urban areas in search for employment opportunities with better incomes. This has prompted series of social crises among which is the deteriorating housing conditions especially in urban centres. The rapid urbanization of the last century caused more slums in the major cities of the world, particularly in developing nations (Singh, 2012). Closely associated with slum is the issue of overcrowding i.e. too many people occupying a room or building. Such overcrowding has been responsible for the collapse of some (storeyed) buildings in many developing countries. Housing environment is also affected; Air and water pollution, solid wastes and less available space for comfortable living are more extensive problems in cities (Nasrin, 2010). Dearth of land for housing; land is needed for house construction; it becomes insufficient and hotly scrambled for. Consequently, the cost of land rises and the process of land acquisition become tedious and complicated. Olarewaju, and Oviasogie (2019) noted that the supply of adequate quantity and quality of housing does not commensurate with the urbanization process, and that is what leads to high rents, overcrowding, and development of slum communities.

In Nigeria a great proportion of the urban population, still live in substandard, deplorable and unsanitary residential environments, despite the fact that decent housing is regarded as the right of every individual, (Olayiwola, Adeleye and Ogunshakin, 2005). The buildings therein are often badly maintained and lack sanitary facilities, light, privacy, and adequate ventilation among others. This situation contradicts the goals of National Policy on Housing, which seek to secure for all Nigerians good quality housing that is adequate to their health and well being (Udoo, Iorliam and Kumaiin, 2018). Housing condition is affected by many factors which include age of the dwelling units, the type of building and roofing materials used in their construction, varieties and adequacy of facilities provided in the dwellings and the mode of handling the various aspects of construction (Udoo, Iorliam and  Kumaiin, 2018).

A study by Nelago (2015) examine the effect of urbanisation on housing conditions in urban areas in Namibia in terms of access to basic needs; as well as to assess factors associated with homeownership and found that housing conditions in urban areas are generally perceived to be poor, those in improvised housing units lack basic facilities including toilet facilities and electricity. A study also by Waheeda, Zaheeda, Ahmad, and Mahmoud (2019) examines the implications of urbanization on housing condition in Gwagwalada town and found that upsurge population growth is caused by migration; the population growth affects the quality, quantity and environmental facilities of housing. The study further ranked the effects of urbanization on housing condition in the study area were six effects were identified as growth of slums & squatter settlement, difficulties associated with land supply, overcrowding, water supply problem, Waste disposal problem, Sewerage problem and difficulties associated with land supply ranked first while overcrowding ranked sixth. Udoo, Iorliam and Kumaiin, (2018) studied Housing and Neighborhood Condition in the Katungu District of Makurdi Town. Ismail, Ezra, Abdulkadir, Muhammad, and Ahmed (2015) studied urban growth and housing problems in Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State in Nigeria and found that overcrowding and congestion, poor accessibility, substandard and inadequate housing, as well as insufficient basic amenities and infrastructural facilities are the housing problems in the area. These studies did not assess the level effect on housing condition in some urban centres but there is not such research in Lafia town.

Lafia town as a status as local government headquarters and state capital has witnessed the influx of population into the town. It was observed Lafia town, the changes land uses that include land for housing which at 1996 accounted for 8.02 km² representing 9.7% of the urban area, in 2003 the space was 7.5km² representing 9.1% showing decrease, in 2010 it shows a decrease of 5.6km² with 6.9% while in 2017 and 2021 shows also a decrease of 4.2km² and 5.04 with percentages of 5.1% and 6.1% respectively (Lafia Development Plan, 2012, Google earth analysis). The influx of people to urban areas has resulted in expansion of informal settlements in Lafia town, causing high demand for services in urban areas and increased poor housing conditions. High population growth implies that more housing units will be required to cater for the shelter needs, but this is not met in Ciroma ward as observed. The high population growth implies that more housing units will be required to cater for the shelter needs, but this is not met in Ciroma ward. As the growth of the economy lags behind population growth this has resulted in less funds being available for development and maintenance of infrastructure, in increased unemployment, and in people being less able to afford basic housing and services.

It was observed that the rapidly expanding population in Ciroma ward, Lafia town is provoking rapid urbanization with worsening housing conditions. The state of housing conditions in Ciroma ward of Lafia town is one of the major urban management challenges that the country is faced with. According to Lafia Development Plan (2012) about 52% of the population in Lafia town including Ciroma ward lives in slum environment lacking basic necessities such as potable water, electricity, education, health care services and adequate shelter. By 2015, more than 45% of the dwelling units in the slum areas were built out of temporary building materials that could not maintain their stability for more than three years. The Lafia Development Plan of 2012 Household Survey shows that tenements accounted for 52.3% of the dwelling units in Lafia town, while a large proportion of households lived in single rooms, in crowded environment, and had intermittent and low incomes. In light of this that this paper seek to assess the effects of urbanization on housing condition in Ciroma ward of Lafia town in order to provide measures to ameliorate the effects.

LITERATURE REVIEW

A house could be described as a dwelling unit; it is more than a shelter as it includes physical structures as well as surrounding environments (Jiboye, 2014). Housing is described as a unit of a house, its immediate environment, sanitation, drainage, residential facilities and all economic and social activities that makes life worthwhile (Opoko and Oluwatayo, 2014; Jiboye, 2014)

Housing is a necessity to man. It is not only the shelter element. It involves other attribute like location, facilities environmental quality, investment, privacy etc. a major problem in Nigeria how to provide housing to meet the needs of teeming population. Although according to third National Development Plan (NDP), Nigeria housing problem is essentially an urban problem; this was meant to imply that rural areas do not have housing problem.

Housing, commonly known as shelter is one of the basic needs of humanity; the others being food and clothing (Rao, 2001). Okolie (2001) notes, housing is much more than shelter since it includes utilities and community services such as electricity, water supply, access roads, sewerage and drainage and refuse disposal facilities. Housing is a fundamental need for dignified living and represents a major area of deprivation for the urban poor in Nigeria. The rate of provision of new housing stock in Nigeria has lagged behind the rate of population growth which is responsible for the formation of slums, growth of squatter settlements and high rent beyond the affordable limit of the poor. Housing poverty is manifested in the quality of housing occupied by low-income earners which is often of poor architectural standard, poor construction, and inadequate services. The lack of adequate housing accounts for the preponderance of the large proportion of urban dwellers in Nigeria living in housing at densities and environmental conditions which constitute serious health hazard and threat to their general productivity.

Housing quality is often evaluated in terms of the quality of design, building materials, standard of construction, and the provision and performance of public amenities. However the satisfaction of the user population with their housing and its environment is an important determinant of housing quality. Meeting the needs of particular families is an important criterion in evaluating housing quality and therefore the value of a house is determined by the extent by which it satisfies or frustrates the needs of its users (Turner, 1972).

Urbanization is a global phenomenon sweeping through most cities like a wild fire (Opoko and Oluwatayo, 2014). As a result of the magnitude and speed, it exerts demand on urban facilities which leads to poor housing development condition. The population of urban centers is increasing by the day and housing is not keeping pace with the rising population (Yakubu, Akaateba and Akanbang, 2014). According to UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) (2002), this rapid urbanisation is attributed to the natural growth of urban populations and migration to urban centres from the rural areas owing to declining agricultural productivity and the search for better employment opportunities and income. According to Urbanization refers to agglomeration of human population in urban areas or settlements (Ode, 2006). Petkar, Macwan and Takkekar (2012) have explained urbanization as process by which large numbers of people become permanently concentrated in relatively small areas, forming cities. Hoornweg, Freire, Lee, Bhada-Tata & Yuen (2011), urbanization is a defining phenomenon of this century and developing nations are at the locus of this transformation. This transformation represents a huge opportunity but also a daunting and disturbing challenge. As the above source notes, consequent upon burgeoning population in cities, the problems of space and housing for all have intensified (Liambee, 2016).

Most contemporary African cities are characterized by poor housing, water, sanitation and health infrastructures (Adeoye, 2016). Makinde (2014) identified housing problem as economic recession which hinders housing supply; inaccessibility of land, high cost of building and construction materials, and high planning standard by planning authorities and delay in plan approval. Omole (2010), classified housing problems into; qualitative housing problem which is the inability of a dweller to get satisfaction regarding certain minimal safety and environmental facilities such as water supply, access road, electricity, telecommunication facilities as well as social infrastructure such as hospitals, clinics, school and markets and quantitative housing problem which is the absolute shortage of dwelling unit or insufficient supply of housing compared to total demand (Makinde, 2014; Kamruzzaman and Hakim, 2016).

Conditions of urban housing in Nigeria are very deplorable (Olotuah 1997; Nkwogu, 2001; Arayela, 2004; Adegbehingbe, 2011; Olotuah 2005, 2015). This is in spite of public sector intervention in housing in Nigeria. The studies affirm that 75% of the dwelling units in urban centers in Nigeria are substandard and the dwellings are sited in slums. The inadequacy of the quality of most of urban housing manifests mainly in the poor physical state of the buildings. They are often unsafe and insecure and do not provide adequate shelter from the elements of weather. Walls of the buildings are built mainly with poor sand concrete blocks, and concrete used for construction often contain excessive quantities of dust and clayey matter. Arum & Olotuah (2006) averred that this is inimical to the production of good quality concrete. In most cases the environment in which the buildings are located is squalid, and this generally leads to slum conditions.

The quantitative inadequacy problem of housing stock translates to qualitative problems in the cities. High rates of overcrowding, fast deteriorating environmental facilities, degenerating building structures, and infrastructural decay have been reported in all the urban centres in Nigeria (Agbola, 2006; Jiboye, 2010). Consequently, housing problems in Nigeria as in other developing countries encompass the quantitative inadequacy of housing, the structural deficiency in the quality of existing stocks and poor aesthetic conditions of the housing environment. Housing condition is affected by many factors. Arigbola (2002) highlighted some of these to include: age of the dwelling units, the type of building and roofing materials used in their construction, varieties and adequacy of facilities provided in the dwellings and the mode of handling the various aspects of construction (site preparation, foundation laying and the construction of walls and roofing). These elements according Yakubu et al (2014) and Lawrence (2004) are critical in assessing housing condition regardless of the type of house (traditional, or modern). It becomes a concern only when it falls short of reliability required; the focus of this work is on the physical state of dwelling units, and the surrounding environmental condition. Folaranmi (2012), concurs that the important criteria in assessment of housing condition comprise; The nature of lighting, air spaces and open spaces, Indoor and environmental sanitation, Availability of toilets, bathrooms, water, electricity, Types of building material used, Building orientation and level of ventilation, Drainage and general environmental condition  Studies have shown that urbanization has effect on housing which include; access to land for housing development has become almost an insurmountable challenge. In recent years, the prices of land have risen exponentially, making it difficult for low and middle income earners, the situation has aggravated by multiple complex system of land tenure in cities and town (Jiboye, 2014).

The growth of slums and squatters in urban areas is even further exacerbated by fast-paced industrialization, lack of developed land for housing, large influx of rural immigrants to the cities in search of better life, and the elevated prices of land beyond the reach of the urban poor. According to UN-Habitat (2007), the growth of slums in Kampala is “attributed to the failure of Kampala Structure Plans to cater for the growth and development of African neighbours, rapid population growth, land tenure systems that are complicated and multiple, poverty and low incomes”. Overcrowding is logical consequence of overpopulation in urban areas. Adekola (2016) asserted that it is naturally expected that cities and towns that have large number of population squeezed in small space suffer from overcrowding. This problem is specifically more acute in urban areas where there is large influx of unemployed and underemployed immigrants who have no place to live in.

METHODOLOGY

3.1 Study Area

Lafia town is located in the North Central of Nigeria and at the south-western part of Nasarawa State on Longitude 7ᴼ 31ˡ E and Latitude 8ᴼ 29ˡ N with estimated population of 348,000 in 2020 (United Nations, 2020). Lafia is served by the Federal Road (A3) linking it with Makurdi (the capital of Benue State) to the south; Akwanga-Keffi and Abuja (the Federal Capital city) to the northwest; and Jos (the capital of Plateau State) to its northeast (Appendix i and ii). Lafia is the headquarters of Lafia LGA, which has been subdivided into development areas including Lafia North Local Council Development Area with Shabu as its headquarters. The dual role of Lafia as a State capital and Local Government headquarters; are recipes for its rapid population growth due to the large number of people who flock into the city in search of white collar jobs.

The study location Ciroma ward is situated at the old existing settlement of Lafia town consists of structural units distinguished in terms of age of building as well as density of physical development and population. The eastern bank of River Amba and railway enclose the old town which was walled. It is southwest of the railway and on the North edge of the river Amba. The central elements of the sector are the Emir’s palace and central mosque as the initial koro settlement which has indeed been swallowed up and did not have such monumental structures. Additionally, the old town is characterized by the indigenous cultural values of the dominant inhabitants (Kambari, Hausa-fulani and other Muslim communities). The old town is a high density residential area with the buildings largely constructed of mud walls with sand-cement plastering and zinc roofing. The net population density is highest in this part of Lafia, estimated at a value of between 200-250 persons per hectare. The density gradient then sharply declines to the outskirts on to the other sectors of the town.

3.2 Sampling Method

The study adopted survey design which involves quantitative approach of data collection and analysis. The analysis of data employed simple descriptive statistics method. However, the reconnaissance survey was conducted to identify the problem of the area and also questionnaire were administered to obtain information from the household. Sampling frame is the numbers of households head living in the study area. The population of the study consists of household heads.

The population of Ciroma ward is 81,632 people from 2006 National Population Census. The population was projected to 2021 using 3.0 percent growth rate to 127,182. Using the projected population is assumed that household size is 8 which when divided by the population is 15,898 households. In order to administer questionnaires for this study, sample size was determined using the Yamane’s (1986) formula which gave 391 samples of questionnaire to be administered. This sample is too large for the study considering limited time to conduct this research. Therefore, sample size was determined using Frankforth-Nachiamias concept. Frankforth-Nachiamias (1992), recommended that for complexity and largeness of population a sample size of 1% is large enough for research to achieve maximum collection for analysis. A sample size 1% was adopted for this study which consisting of 159 questionnaires.

The study technique used was simple random Sampling technique which gives an opportunity to select the number of questionnaires that will be administered. The questionnaire that was designed for this study was used to administer to different households at random from various areas within the jurisdiction of the study area. The instruments used were questionnaire, Personal Observation/Field Survey.

The data collected for this study was analyzed using simple descriptive statistics. Frequency and percentage were used for the analysis to highlight the nature of the housing conditions in the area. The effect of the urbanization on housing condition was ranked using mean score. These statistical tools were used because they are suitable means of breaking down and analyzing data.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

This focuses on the analysis of data collected through questionnaires administration and observations. The results of findings cover housing condition survey assessment of effect of urbanization, and factor of urbanization in the study area.

Table 1: Physical Condition of housing Units

Source: Field Survey, 2021

This comprises of foundation, walling, roofing and electricity condition using the external housing condition index to aid with the interpretation of results. Table 1 show that 61.0% of condition of housing unit is very poor, 20.7% of the assessment results reveals is poor while 12.6% good. And it implies that materials used in housing development are poor due to poverty level of the residents. Materials were built out of temporary building materials that could not maintain their stability over the years. The study reveals that housing units lack basic facilities including toilet facilities and electricity.

Table 2: Environmental Condition

Source: Field Survey, 2021

Environmental condition is referred to in this work as the immediate surroundings of dwelling places. The environmental variables considered in this report are; transport and accessibility, drainage of storm water and management of solid waste in the area. Table 2 shows that 51.5% of the condition is poor while 29.1% of the condition is very poor and 19.4% is relatively good. This reveals that the environmental condition is poor due to poor living standard of the people.

Table 4: The Nature of Lighting, Air Space and Open Area

Source: Field Survey, 2021

Table 4 shows that 47.4% are poor in the nature of lighting air space of the area, 31.6% are good while 20.9% are very poor in the area.

Table 5: Environmental facilities/sanitation services

Source: Field Survey, 2021

Table 5 shows that 49.5% in the Environmental sanitation are good, 23.0% are poor while 15.3% are very good and 12.2% are very poor.

Table 6: Building Orientation and Level of Ventilation

Source: Field Survey, 2021

Table 6 shows that 51.04% in the building orientation and level of ventilation are good while 24.5% are very good, 15.3% are poor and 9.2% are very poor in air space of the area

Table 7: Drainage and General Environmental Condition

Source: Field Survey, 2021

Table 7 shows that 44.4% are poor Drainage and general environmental condition, while 29.6% are good, 16.8% are very poor and 9.2% are very good.

Table 8: Suggested Factors account for Urbanization in Ciroma ward

Source: Field Survey, 2021.

The result from the table 8 shows that 61.2% 120 are Natural increase that affects urbanization on housing condition. While 81.6% are internal migration, 22.9% are land tax free, 86.7% are access to transportation network, 79.1% are Availability of land and 77.0% has Available and affordable housing accommodation 91.8% has Availability of infrastructural facilities 68.4% are closeness of central business district CBD 93.9% are security and safety live and 76.5% are availability of economic opportunities. This assessed the effect of urbanization on housing condition in Ciroma ward Lafia. This implies that the ability to afford a comfortable housing unit is not in the study area. Difficulty in accessing land (Mukiibi, 2008) observed that in Kampala price of land has risen exponentially, making it unaffordable to many low and middle-income earners. The situation has been further aggravated by the multiple complex systems of land tenure in the city and land speculation and that rapid urban population growth has led to increase in housing demand that cannot be met by the existing housing delivery system. Mukiibi (2008) studies also revealed that the housing shortage in Kampala is not confined to low-income groups but is also acute among the medium income groups.

Table 9: Ranking effects of urbanization on housing condition in the study area

Source: Author’s Analysis, 2021

Ranking of the responses in Table 9 indicates that solid waste disposal problem ranked 1^stas main effect of urbanization on housing condition in Ciroma Ward. The respondents ranked growth of slums and squatter settlements as 2^nd while increased housing demand and overcrowding of people, and increased land price as the 3^nd, 4^rd and 5^th major effects of urbanization on the housing condition of the study area. This study negates that of Waheeda et al., (2019) which revealed that overcrowding which ranked 1^stis the main effect of urbanization on housing condition in Gwagwalada. The respondents ranked growth of slumps and squatter settlement, and water supply problem as the 2nd and 3rd major effects of urbanization on the housing condition in Gwagwalada.

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

This focuses on summarizing the various findings gotten in the course of this research work, so as to make recommendations;

1. The assessment of housing units, nature of lighting air space and open area indicate that they are in poor condition and general environmental sanitation is also poor. A study also shows that there is around 50-60% of the population of urban areas that live in urban slums where basic facilities such as water, sanitation, health, electricity etc. are poor (Tsinda et al., 2013). Poor sanitation and inadequate access to safe water are public health concerns because they create conditions conducive to the spread of diseases. This is in agreement with this study.
2. The assessment revealed that there is difficulty in assessing land and overcrowding of people are the major effects of urbanization in the study area.
3. The study show that sanitary facilities in 61.2% of houses at study area in bad condition.
4. The result shows that the structural and aesthetic conditions of 65.5% of the dwelling units are in various stage of dilapidation
5. The study reveals that 62% of houses are poorly maintained in the area
6. Also the state of environmental facilities such as street, drainage and solid waste management condition also reveals that none of these facilities are in good condition. On the whole, the housing condition in the area is in a deplorable state and needs urgent intervention.
7. The research also shows that increase population growth is caused by migration and secure environment; these affect the quality and quantity of housing and environmental facilities.

CONCLUSION

Housing is a basic necessity of life without prejudice for economic condition. In spite of this, housing problem is universal. In Nigeria it exists in urban and rural places. Housing problem in urban places takes the form of slum dwelling, homelessness, overcrowding, squatter settlements and substandard housing units. In the rural areas, poor housing quality, deficient environmental condition as well as inadequate infrastructural facilities are the order of the day. Policy instrument is one of the ways of tackling housing problems.

Government should facilitate the provision of basic social amenities in terms of water supply, waste management, electricity, proper drainage system and also promote rehabilitation and timely maintenance of these amenities. All causes of rural-urban migration should be looked into by the government and see that they are resolved. If the situation could be abated and reversed, it will remove pressures on urban resources. Urban area will be depopulated and the visible and obvious consequences will be reduced.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Government should facilitate the provision of basic social amenities in terms of water supply, waste management, electricity, proper drainage system and also promote rehabilitation and timely maintenance of these amenities.
2. Government should upgrade the area whereby the dwelling units, streets and drainages will be reconstructed.
3. Government should create new satellite settlements and provide site and services schemes for them to help reduce the high rates of population growth in the study area.
4. There should be provision of basic amenities and infrastructural facilities and utilities that are lacking in the area.
5. Nasarawa State Urban Development Board (NUBD) should enforce the development control standards in the area.
6. Government should provide and implement employment opportunities and wealth creation activities so that people can earn a living to pay for the maintenance of the service

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APPENDICES

Figure 1: Nigeria Showing Nasarawa State

Source: Nasarawa State Ministry of Lands and Urban Development, (2021)

Figure 2: Nasarawa State showing Lafia

Figure 3: Map of Lafia town showing the study area

Figure 4: Existing Land Use Map of Lafia town