4. Advantages and disadvantages of urbanization in Nigeria

The rapid growth of urbanization in Nigeria has affected the society, both positively and negatively. The following are the advantages of urbanization in the country:

Urbanization has induced modernization to a certain level which has enabled the use of the modern methods of construction and equipments in some areas of living and accomplishing day-to-day activities, both at work and at home; hereby enhancing the lives of the urban populace, from the rural to modern. It has also brought about an improved economic development in form of improvement in trades and industry which has in turn contributed to the gross domestic product (GDP) [4].

With the establishment of industries, powered by mechanized equipment, workers required training on the technical mode of operating the equipment. This created learning and training opportunities for workers, which were often provided by the employing companies resulting in subsequent technological advancement, enlightenment and improvements for the workers generally. This also came with attendant growth of the literacy rate of the urban populace with the consequence of improved standards of living for the workers.

Nigeria has experienced tremendous economic growth from independence to date as indicated by the GDP which was US\$4.1 in 1960 and is presently US\$405.10 billion. However, the GDP experienced its highest in 2014 with a GDP of US\$568.49 billion [4], after which it started witnessing a decline. It is yet to regain an upward growth since then. Owing to the presence of industries in the urban centres, many of the dwellers are involved in the processing of staple foods, using agricultural products as raw materials. Commercial activities are in the increase due to urbanization, which encourages the establishment of shopping centres, markets and offices.

Many of the urban centres are seats of the Federal, States and Local governments, thereby providing administrative and contract jobs for the people. Urbanization also encourages the establishments of educational institutions like universities, polytechnics, secondary and primary schools; places of worship like churches and mosques; relaxation centres like restaurants and hotels. As a result, these improve the socio-cultural interactions and development among the population. Conversely, urbanization also has some attendant disadvantages as described below:

as scrap wood, cardboards, bamboo, zinc roofing sheets, rammed earth, tarpaulin, to mention a few. Some are even occupied without basic features such as windows, doors or roofs; most of which are being substituted with used fabrics or polythene materials to protect them, however minimally, from the adverse weather conditions. These areas attract the urban poor, and thereby, they are usually overpopulated, thereby resulting in poor indoor air quality, poor ventilation and day lighting as well as lack of proper waste disposal/management, lack of potable water; without proper furniture leading to indecent and substandard way of living and inaccessibility to good public health care services and so on. All these lead to severe illnesses and sicknesses which could be acute or chronic and might lead to reduced life-span and increased morbidities and mortalities. Most urban centres are not spared from these unlawful settlements. Slum areas in Lagos include: Makoko, Ajegunle, Bariga, Mushin and so on. Likewise slum settlements in Abuja include: Nyanya, Lokogoma, Garki village, Gishiri,

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With increased and ongoing influx of people into the cities, there is a consequent increase in household waste. Most landfills, which are not located within the urban core but in and around the squatter settlements, are completely full and overflowing to the surrounding areas with open decomposition of wastes. This leads to the outbreaks of diseases, festered by insects and rodents like houseflies, rats, and cockroaches, which in turn take a negative toll on the swamp dwellers. In addition, there are inadequate sewage facilities in areas of unchecked rapid growth of slums and squatter settlements which are unlawfully developed by the urban

Figure 3. Makoko, a slum with part of its community built on stilts along the Lagos lagoon. Picture credit: CNN [10].

Figure 4. A slum in central Lagos. Picture credit: BBC [11].

Lugbe to mention a few. Figures 3 and 4 are samples of slums in Lagos.

Overpopulation is a major setback of urbanization, as people keep migrating en masse from the rural areas to the urban centres without a commensurate increase in the existing social infrastructure. Decent accommodation is not always adequate, leading to overcrowding and slum life. Inadequacy of resources and acute shortage of land space as the density per km<sup>2</sup> keep increasing with subsequent overcrowding and overburdening of the existing resources resulting in shortage of the resources.

There is shortage of jobs as more people migrate to the urban centres in search of jobs to sustain their daily living without the government creating new job opportunities. This is more so as a result of some industries that shut down because of the downturn in the economy. There is also a shortage of the required job opportunities to adequately engage majority of the populace in the urban centres. Hence, there are a lot of people, especially the youths, without any jobs who find it difficult to make ends meet on a daily basis. Consequently, the rate of criminal activities within the urban centres is very high. The unending influx of youths and jobless able-bodied people into urban centres is posing a serious threat to the already precarious state of the country's security challenges like kidnapping, robbery, ritual killings and so on.

The cost of living in urban centres is relatively high, hence, making it difficult for the low income groups to maintain a decent standard of living. This can be gleaned from the huge number of people demanding for scarce or inadequate facilities such as houses, transportation facilities, foods, drugs and clothings. Needless to mention that the stiff competition for limited resources and facilities would engender contestatious living among the people.

Another negative characterization of urban life is pollution. Air and water pollution may be caused mainly by either the release of greenhouse gases (GHG) and effluents from the industries into the environment or produced by exhaust emissions from vehicles used for transportation. It can also be caused by poor indoor air quality due to overcrowding and lack of proper waste disposal. Continuous release of these GHG, over time, has resulted in global warming. This is a critical issue which is affecting the world as a whole and every nation including Nigeria still face challenges in terms of finding a long-lasting solution to the predicament.

Migrants who cannot afford the high rent of housing in the urban centres tend to develop make-shift houses in and around the cities where there are vacant and unclaimed parcels of land that are farther away from the core urban centres, thereby resulting in slums. A slum is defined by the UN Habitat as "a heavily populated urban area characterized by substandard housing and squalor" [9]. It further describes it as "the poorest quality housing, and the most unsanitary conditions; a refuge for marginal activities including crime, 'vice' and drug abuse; a likely source for many epidemics that ravaged urban areas; a place apart from all that was decent and wholesome" [9].

These slums and shanties are not built in accordance with building regulations. None of the rules and regulations is considered from land use to permit and approval, to materials used to structural considerations. They are built with any material within the reach of the people, such as scrap wood, cardboards, bamboo, zinc roofing sheets, rammed earth, tarpaulin, to mention a few. Some are even occupied without basic features such as windows, doors or roofs; most of which are being substituted with used fabrics or polythene materials to protect them, however minimally, from the adverse weather conditions. These areas attract the urban poor, and thereby, they are usually overpopulated, thereby resulting in poor indoor air quality, poor ventilation and day lighting as well as lack of proper waste disposal/management, lack of potable water; without proper furniture leading to indecent and substandard way of living and inaccessibility to good public health care services and so on. All these lead to severe illnesses and sicknesses which could be acute or chronic and might lead to reduced life-span and increased morbidities and mortalities. Most urban centres are not spared from these unlawful settlements. Slum areas in Lagos include: Makoko, Ajegunle, Bariga, Mushin and so on. Likewise slum settlements in Abuja include: Nyanya, Lokogoma, Garki village, Gishiri, Lugbe to mention a few. Figures 3 and 4 are samples of slums in Lagos.

With increased and ongoing influx of people into the cities, there is a consequent increase in household waste. Most landfills, which are not located within the urban core but in and around the squatter settlements, are completely full and overflowing to the surrounding areas with open decomposition of wastes. This leads to the outbreaks of diseases, festered by insects and rodents like houseflies, rats, and cockroaches, which in turn take a negative toll on the swamp dwellers. In addition, there are inadequate sewage facilities in areas of unchecked rapid growth of slums and squatter settlements which are unlawfully developed by the urban

Figure 3. Makoko, a slum with part of its community built on stilts along the Lagos lagoon. Picture credit: CNN [10].

Figure 4. A slum in central Lagos. Picture credit: BBC [11].

primary schools; places of worship like churches and mosques; relaxation centres like restaurants and hotels. As a result, these improve the socio-cultural interactions and development among the population. Conversely, urbanization also has some attendant disadvantages as

Overpopulation is a major setback of urbanization, as people keep migrating en masse from the rural areas to the urban centres without a commensurate increase in the existing social infrastructure. Decent accommodation is not always adequate, leading to overcrowding and slum life. Inadequacy of resources and acute shortage of land space as the density per km<sup>2</sup> keep increasing with subsequent overcrowding and overburdening of the existing resources

There is shortage of jobs as more people migrate to the urban centres in search of jobs to sustain their daily living without the government creating new job opportunities. This is more so as a result of some industries that shut down because of the downturn in the economy. There is also a shortage of the required job opportunities to adequately engage majority of the populace in the urban centres. Hence, there are a lot of people, especially the youths, without any jobs who find it difficult to make ends meet on a daily basis. Consequently, the rate of criminal activities within the urban centres is very high. The unending influx of youths and jobless able-bodied people into urban centres is posing a serious threat to the already precarious state of the

The cost of living in urban centres is relatively high, hence, making it difficult for the low income groups to maintain a decent standard of living. This can be gleaned from the huge number of people demanding for scarce or inadequate facilities such as houses, transportation facilities, foods, drugs and clothings. Needless to mention that the stiff competition for limited

Another negative characterization of urban life is pollution. Air and water pollution may be caused mainly by either the release of greenhouse gases (GHG) and effluents from the industries into the environment or produced by exhaust emissions from vehicles used for transportation. It can also be caused by poor indoor air quality due to overcrowding and lack of proper waste disposal. Continuous release of these GHG, over time, has resulted in global warming. This is a critical issue which is affecting the world as a whole and every nation including Nigeria still face challenges in terms of finding a long-lasting solution to the predicament.

Migrants who cannot afford the high rent of housing in the urban centres tend to develop make-shift houses in and around the cities where there are vacant and unclaimed parcels of land that are farther away from the core urban centres, thereby resulting in slums. A slum is defined by the UN Habitat as "a heavily populated urban area characterized by substandard housing and squalor" [9]. It further describes it as "the poorest quality housing, and the most unsanitary conditions; a refuge for marginal activities including crime, 'vice' and drug abuse; a likely source for many epidemics that ravaged urban areas; a place apart from all that was

These slums and shanties are not built in accordance with building regulations. None of the rules and regulations is considered from land use to permit and approval, to materials used to structural considerations. They are built with any material within the reach of the people, such

country's security challenges like kidnapping, robbery, ritual killings and so on.

resources and facilities would engender contestatious living among the people.

described below:

78 Housing

resulting in shortage of the resources.

decent and wholesome" [9].

poor who cannot afford the exorbitant rent within the cities. The result is a huge crisis of untreated sewage, which carelessly drains into the open environment and leaves behind either decomposed or dried-up elements causing eventual water and environmental pollution as it drains into the nearby streams, rivers and oceans.

human rights and basic needs of life; that is, shelter [15]. As mentioned in 1 of 4.3 above, many of the problems relating to urbanization can be solved through effective planning of housing in the country. This is because most of the other disadvantages are relative to the development of slums and squatter settlements. The main aim of this chapter is to show that if this particular need of affordable housing, which is shelter, is met in the urban centres; it would go a long way in

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Housing, also referred to as shelter, is one of the three fundamental human rights, and it forms an essential part of human settlement with great impact on the health, welfare, productivity and quality of life of man [15, 16]. Coker et al. citing Fanning (1967), Macpherson (1979) and Riaz (1987) stated that "researchers have shown that housing can affect mental and physical health, both positively and negatively [17]; hence its provision for the people should be one of the primary concerns of every nation. The provision of adequate affordable housing for Nigerians will initiate a notable growth as it will provide shelter for the people and also, bring about lots of infrastructural development, thereby meeting some of the social needs of the populace. It will also generate an increase in the activities of the housing and building industry, thereby creating more job opportunities for both skilled and unskilled labour through the construction industry, resulting in increased productivity and a subsequent rise in the country's GDP; thus improving its economic development. A well planned housing system will also promote environmental sustainability because the provision of adequate housing will go hand in hand with the provision of improved indoor air quality, potable water, good sanitary, sewage and waste management, improved and sustainable transportation network and consequent reduction in environmental pollution. This achievement would, overall, be a driver for the nation towards development in a sustainable way; indicating that housing has

To a nation such as Nigeria, housing is a very important and critical component in its social and economic framework [18] because it accommodates the smallest unit of its society, referred to as the family. Hence, housing is an indicator of a family's standard of living or societal class [19]. Consequently, housing also signifies the living standards of a society [20]. However, the difference between the demand for housing and its supply in Nigeria and most developing countries is overly incongruent. With the high cost of building materials as a result of the cost of production and importation as adduced by Fasakin and Ogunseni [21], it may still be a very challenging situation for the government to solve the affordable housing problems, except

Evidently, there is an increasing rise in the housing deficit which now stands between, 17 and 20 million housing units at a growth rate of 900,000 units per annum, due to the fast population growth and urbanization which will require at least 1000,000 housing units and approximately US\$363 billion to curtail [24]. The Nigerian population is at 195,875,237 of which the urban population is 48.9% [5]. Over 90% of the country's population are of the

addressing most of the other negative impacts of urbanization in Nigeria.

significant effects on all the three domains of sustainable development.

something is done to cut down on cost [22, 23].

6. The need for affordable housing in Nigeria

As evident from above, urbanization in the country results in poor health condition of many urban dwellers. This is a resultant effect of mainly slums and indecent settlements that are usually precipitated by urbanization. Urbanization also brings about environmental degradation. This is any change or disturbance that is harmful to the environment [12]. It is the destruction of the natural habitat or ecosystem through the depletion of natural resources such as air, water and soil. In comparison, Mason, states that urbanization "can, and in some cases does, contribute effectively to overall national economic growth and development". Examples are China and Korea where urbanization is accompanied by income growth [13]. The UNFPA asserts that "no country in the industrial age has ever achieved significant economic growth without urbanization" [13]. It further argues that the urban centres have the capabilities of finding solutions to the challenges they face, claiming that "the potential benefits of urbanization far outweigh the disadvantages: The challenge is in learning how to exploit its possibilities" [14]. Thereby establishing a fact that urbanization in itself is not really bad, and if properly managed, it will result in socio-economic and environmental development of the nation.
