Role of Land Use Planning on Urban Development in Akure, Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51459/jostir.2025.1.1.08Keywords:
Land Use, Land Use Planning, Urban Development, Residential neighborhood, Urban GrowthAbstract
This study examines the role of land use planning in shaping sustainable urban development in Ijapo residential neighbourhood, Akure, Nigeria. With rapid expansion of cities, strategic land use allocation is critical for managing urban growth. This mixed-methods research technique was used which classified the dominant land utilization categories. Surveys and interviews methods were used to explore community perspectives and planning coordination gaps. Key findings show economic development aim slightly outweighs ecological conservation presently, while community accessibility ranks noticeably secondary. Findings also reveals that, housing affordability was pivotal for embedding inclusive accessibility within conservation-oriented managed expansion rather than unintended sprawl. Proposed policy recommendations center on diversifying single-use neighborhoods into mixed-use, mixed-income densities coordinated to support transit and utilities, avoiding strains. Housing Subsidized affordability strategies should also be clustered in conserved nature areas and transit links, transforming segregated zones into sustainable, accessible, vibrant nodes. Also, Outreach programs and digital engagement platforms should expand public participation channels directly shaping priorities. As regional growth escalates development pressures, there must be a spatial blueprint that must lead sustainably through inclusive coordination reforms.
References
Abrams, R. (2016). Urban Planning and the Importance of Land Use. Planning Commissioners Journal .
Aderamo, A. J. (2012). Transport Development and Urban Land Use Changes in Ilorin, Nigeria. Journal of Transport Geography, 24, 34–45.
Adedayo, A., & Malik, D. (2015). Land Use Planning in Nigeria: An Examination of the Factors Influencing Its Effectiveness. Journal of Environment and Earth Science, 5(10), 52-59.
Adeyemi, A. O. (2017). Evaluating the impact of infrastructure development on urban growth in Akure, Nigeria. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism , 8(3), 556-569.
Afolabi, A. O. (2019). Urbanization and land use planning in Akure, Nigeria: Challenges and prospects. Journal of Sustainable Development , 12(5), 60-74.
Akinbamijo, O. B. (2012). Urbanization, Urban Poverty, Slum and Sustainable Urban Development in Nigerian Cities: A Policy Framework. International Journal of Social and Policy Issues, 9(2), 1-8.
Azizi, N. (2015). The Role of Land Use Planning in Sustainable Urban Development. Eurasian Journal of Social Sciences , 3(1), 22-29.
Batty, M. A. (2012). Smart cities of the future. The European Physical Journal Special Topics , 214(1), 481-518.
Bolund, P. (1999). Ecosystem services in urban areas. In P. &. Bolund, Ecological Economics (pp. 29(2), 293-301).
Burchett, K. S. (2019). Planning for urban resilience: A review of the theoretical and empirical literature. In K. S. Burchett, Sustainability (pp. 11(15), 4096).
Calderón, C. &. (2010). Infrastructure and Economic Development in Sub-Saharan Africa. The World Bank Economic Review , 24(2), 252-281.
Cervero, R. &. (2002). Transit's value-added: Effects of light and commuter rail services on commercial land values. Transportation Research Record.
Cotton, A. &. (2014). Urban Development and Environmental Sustainability in Africa. In Urbanization and Sustainability in Asia and Africa , pp. 17-30.
Creswell, J. W. (2017). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage publications.
Denzin, N. K. (2017). The Sage handbook of qualitative research. Sage Publications.
Egunjobi, L. (1999). Urban Management by Local Government in Nigeria. NISER.
Enisan, O. F. and Eniola Aluko (2015): Process of Urban Land Use Change in Nigeria. International Journal of Education and Research (IJERN), 3 (8): 87-100. ISSN: 2411-5681, http://www. Ijern.com
Enisan O. F. (2019). Assessment of Housing Needs in the Core Area of Akure, Nigeria. International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis. 7(4): 75-84. doi: 10.11648/j.ijema.20190704.11
Enisan O. F. (2020): Effect of Land Price on Housing Density Mix in Residential Areas of Akure, Nigeria. Housing and the SDGs in Urban Africa. Africa Journal Housing and Sustainable Development. 1 (1): 144-159 http://ujh.unilag.edu.ng/index.php/ajhsd
Ewing, R. H. (2014). Urban sprawl as a risk factor in motor vehicle crashes. In R. H. Ewing, Urban Studies (pp. 51(13), 2641-2657).
Federal Ministry of Environment (2019). National Environmental Policy. Abuja: Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Fishman, R. (1987). Bourgeois Utopias: The Rise and Fall of Suburbia. Basic Books.
Fogelson, R. M. (1967). Big-City Government in the Progressive Era: The Creation of an Airport in Los Angeles. Journal of Urban History , 15(4), 366-388.
Global Cities Institute, (2023). The Distributed Geography of Global Opportunity. Global Cities Report. https://www.kearney.com/service/global-business-policy-council/gcr
Giles-Corti, B. V. M. (2016). A global challenge. In B. V.-M. Giles-Corti, City planning and population health (pp. 388(10062), 2912-2924). The Lancet.
Godschalk, D. (2011). Community planning. In International Encyclopedia of Political Science. Thousand Oaks,, CA: SAGE Publications.
Godschalk, D. R. (2004). Land use planning challenges: Coping with conflicts in visions of sustainable development and livable communities. Journal of the American Planning Association , 70(1), 5-13.
Hall, P. (2002). Cities of Tomorrow: An Intellectual History of Urban Planning and Design in the Twentieth Century. Blackwell Publishing.
Harris, C. D. (1945). The Nature of Cities. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science , 242(1), 7-17.
Harris, R. &. (1999). Urban Planning and Real Estate Development. Routledge.
IPCC. (2018). Global warming of 1.5°C. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report.
Kessides, C. (2014). World Bank Policy Research Working Paper, (7001). Retrieved from The Urban Transition in Sub-Saharan Africa: Challenges and Opportunities: https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/21310
Larson, K. L. (2019). Exploring sustainability transitions in urban land and water management. Sustainability Science , 14(3), 711-721.
Malizia, E. E (2005). City and Regional Planning: A Primer for Public Health Officials. The Art of Health Promotion, May/June: pp 1-12.
Netting, R. M. (1981). Balancing on an Alp: Ecological Change and Continuity in a Swiss Mountain Community. Cambridge University Press.
Neuman, W. L. (2013). Qualitative and quantitative approaches. In Social research methods. Pearson. Ogunleye, O. S. (2013). Land Use Planning and Infrastructure Development in Metropolitan Lagos. Journal of Environmental Sciences and Resource Management, 5(1), 16-24.
Olajide, O. (2010). Urban Land Use Planning and Re-Planning: The Lagos State Experience. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa, 12(3), 215-228.
Olasimbo, O. O. (2019). Analysis of land use and land cover changes in Akure, Nigeria. Applied Geography , 108, 45-52.
Olayinka, A. O. (2016). The role of land use planning and regulation in sustainable urbanization: A case study of Akure, Nigeria. In A. O. Olayinka, Environment and Urbanization (pp. 28(2), 565-582).
Otegbulu, A. C. (2009). The Role of Urban Planning in Sustainable Urban Development: The Nigerian Experience. Planning Practice & Research , 24(1), 101-119.
Porter, G. (2010). Urbanization and Environmental Sustainability: African Challenges and Future Prospects. The World Bank Research Observer , 25(1), 65-90.
Rydin, Y. (2018). The future of planning: Beyond growth dependence. In Y. Rydin, Progress in Planning (pp. 129, 1-35).
Sanford Bernhardt, J. K. (2013). The Economic Impact of Infrastructure Investment. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management , 139(1), 71-80.
Scientists., B. o. (1966). The cities: Their role in the national economy. Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists , 22(3), 39-43.
Sneath, D. (2003). State Policy and Pastoralism in Xinjiang. In S. Frederick Starr (Ed.), Xinjiang: China's Muslim Borderland. pp. pp. 190-215.
Society., N. G. (2023). National Geographic Society. Retrieved from Land Use and Land Cover. : https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/land-use-and-land-cover/
Sterrett, C. C. (2018). The role of land-use planning in building resilient urban futures. In C. C. Sterrett, Sustainability (pp. 10(11), 4096).
UNCED. (1992). United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. United Nations.
UN-Habitat. (2016). The New Urban Agenda. United Nations Human Settlements Programme .
UN-Habitat (2014). The State of African Cities 2014: Re-Imagining Sustainable Urban Transitions. Nairobi: United Nations Human Settlements Programme.
UN-Habitat (2016). World Cities Report 2016: Urbanization and Development – Emerging Futures. Nairobi: United Nations Human Settlements Programme.
World Bank (2020). Urban Development Overview. Available at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/urbandevelopment/overview
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Journal of Science, Technology and Innovation Research
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.