**3. Brief profile of Nigeria**

spend over 80% (3/5) of their time daily is crucial for healthy living and people's well-being. The notion of housing, however, encompasses a very large number of factors, including biological (mould, cockroaches, dust mites, etc.), chemical (tobacco smoke, paints, etc.) and structural (moisture, ventilation, etc.). Housing is therefore the process of providing a large number of residential buildings with adequate physical infrastructure and social amenities (services) in planned, decent, safe and hygienic neighborhoods to meet the basic and special needs of the population [3, 4]. Housing conditions play a major role in the health status of the individual and a wide variety of housing features have been reported to influence the physical, social, economic and the mental well-being of occupants [5]. WHO [6] stated that housing should provide: protection against communicable diseases, protection against injury, poisoning, and chronic diseases, and reduce psychological and social stress to a minimum. The problem of deficiency in housing quality in Nigeria is common both in the urban and rural areas. The situation is very severe in urban areas due to the fact that most people live in houses that are of poor quality with unsatisfactory environment. The population growth resulting from rural-urban migration and rapid urbanization therefore leads to homelessness, the growth of slums and overcrowding [7–10]. Among the diverse environmental concerns facing developing countries including Nigeria, housing is probably the most fundamental. In the developed countries, numerous studies have associated poor quality housing with increased prevalence of respiratory symptoms in children as well as adults [11]. Drawing on previous studies, there are few studies from the developing countries particularly Nigeria, where a large percentage of the population live in substandard apartment, in which the housing conditions in terms of the building structure and the sur-

Components of housing quality are the measures used to assess housing scheme based on quality rather than cost [12]. Quality housing should provide adequate protection from cold, damp, heat, rain, wind, structural hazards, diseases vectors, and other threats to human health. However, the quality of the internal environment is also important. The components of housing quality measurement should ideally include the external structure, the internal structure, the internal environment coupled with an assessment of the neighborhood and environmental sustainability as described in **Figure 1**. The external structure is described by the structural integrity of the building, weathertightness, security, integrity of the external materials and insulation. The presence of basic facilities such as water supply, sewage disposal, power supply and other internal facilities such as closed doors, secured electric wiring, tightened windows explain the internal structure of the building. The internal environment is described in terms of ventilation, lighting, indoor air quality and moisture. A broader assessment of the quality and safety of the neighborhood in terms of community facilities, quality of paths/streets and services coupled with environmental sustainability forms an integral

rounding environment are unhealthy.

96 Housing

**2. Component of housing quality**

component of housing quality.

Nigeria is the most populous nation in Africa with over 155 million people [13]. Based on 2010 Gross National Income (GNI) per capita, the World Bank classified Nigeria as a "Lower Middle Income Economy," i.e., GNI ranging from \$1006 to \$3975. Nigeria is situated in western Africa on the Gulf of Guinea and has a total area of 923,768 km2 . It shares a 4047 km border with Benin (773 km), Niger (1497 km), Chad (87 km) and Cameroon (1690 km), with a coastline of at least 853 km. Nigeria is between latitudes 4° and 14°N, and longitudes 2° and 15°E. The country has more than 500 ethnic groups, out of which the Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo are the largest. Nigeria is the 12th main manufacturer of petroleum in the world and the 8th major exporter, and has the 10th largest proven reserves. Petroleum plays a large role in the economy of Nigeria, accounting for 40% of GDP and 80% of Government earnings.
