CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of study

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UNHS) defines a slum as "a wide variety of low-income communities and/or poor human living conditions," which includes the huge informal settlements that dot the globe. Urban poverty is increasingly becoming the most visible manifestation. The quality of living quarters in such settlements ranges from a simple hut to permanent constructions, with limited access to water, power, sewage, and other basic services and infrastructure. Slum dwellers live in irregular settlements, squatter housing, unauthorized land developments, and rooms and flats in dilapidated and unfinished buildings, and Nigeria has a fair share of these irregular settlements, with a 4.23 percent increase in the urban population in 2007. However, due to the informal nature of slum settlements and cultural, social, and behavioral factors unique to slum dwellers, Nigeria has a fair share of these irregular settlements. The Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) is done on a regular basis, and while urban areas are studied, slums are not.Lagos is the epitome of urban decline, with a slew of environmental issues ranging from slums and squatter colonies to crime and delinquency. Lagos' rapid population expansion has been linked to rural-urban migration, which accounts for up to 75% of the city's population growth. This rate of expansion, which has topped 6% in the last decade, has translated into extraordinary strain, resulting in unparalleled land demand. As a result, it is usual to witness the majority of undeveloped land being taken over by rural immigrants to meet their urban land needs. Such invasions frequently result in the unplanned and unstructured growth of slum settlements that lack basic infrastructure and are plagued by poor environmental conditions.

1.2 Statement of problem

The proliferation and development of slums to suit the housing needs of largely the urban poor is a key consequence of this unfortunate state of affairs. Many city people, unable to afford nice living quarters due to the high cost of building their own homes, high house rent, excessive acquisition of urban land, and other factors, have sought sanctuary in this type of facility. Despite its "near-hell-status" in slums, slums have also grown in major Nigerian cities as a result of rising urban poverty, failed government policies, and capitalist factors such as globalization, which have exacerbated the urban poor's Rapid uncontrolled urban expansion, without active action by national governments, will compound what is already a human disaster, as slum life comprises of unstable work, governmental persecution and eviction, awful living conditions, and extreme poverty. Slums are notorious for wreaking havoc on cities. Degradation of the landscape and aesthetics due to environmental factors such as erosion, indiscriminate waste disposal, open defecation, and others.

1.3 Objective of study

The following are primary objectives of this study:

1. To examine the causes of urban slum growth in Nigeria

2. To assess how urban slums affect the public health status of residents in Nigeria

3. To examine how urban slums affect the living conditions of residents in Nigeria

1.4 Research question

1. What are the causes of urban slum growth in Nigeria?

2. How do urban slums affect the public health status of residents in Nigeria?

3. How do urban slums affect the living conditions of residents in Nigeria?

1.5 Significance of study

Slum life is an inevitable fact of life. To address the health concerns of urban slum inhabitants, in particular, the government should focus on numerous interventions to address the interconnectedness of their problems, rather than relying just on curative or preventive approaches, which are likely to be ineffective. This indicates that intervention packages that address health service delivery, environmental cleanliness, personal hygiene, health-seeking behavior, and livelihood possibilities are more likely to be effective. Governments at all levels should adopt policies for infrastructure development and long-term development in order to transform the country's countless slums into viable communities.

1.6 Scope of study

This study focuses on examining the causes of urban slum growth in Nigeria. Also, to assess how urban slums affect the public health status of residents in Nigeria. Lastly, to examine how urban slums affect the living conditions of residents in Nigeria. This study is limited to Lagos state.

1.7 Limitation of study

Finance,inadequate materials and time constraint were the challenges the researchers encountered during the course of the study.

1.8 Definition of terms

Public Health Status:Public health is the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their communities. This work is achieved by promoting healthy lifestyles, researching disease and injury prevention, and detecting, preventing and responding to infectious diseases.

Living Conditions: This is the circumstances affecting the way in which people live, especially with regard to their well-being.

Residents: A resident is someone who lives somewhere particular.

Get this material NGN 5,000

Message Us on WhatsApp  »