Human Settlement

Developing countries, particular Nigeria, have been called upon to brace up with the challenges that come with urbanisation. Dr. Alex Ezeh (Eecutive Director, African Population and Health Research Centre in Nairobi, Kenya) and Alhaji Waheed Kadiri (Chairman, African Planners Association) both shared this sentiment while speaking last week at the 2nd International Conference of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, ...

Large-scale land grants totalling more than 1.5 million acres1 to Sime Darby2 and Golden Veroleum3 for oil palm and rubber plantations jeopardizes land rights of local populations, threatens local livelihoods and wellbeing of communities, and puts the future viability of one of the world’s most significant biodiversity hotspots into doubt. A new report (Uncertain Futures) released, by the Liberian NGO ...

Urban planner and erstwhile Secretary, National Housing Policy Council, Yacoob Abiodun, examines the recent decoration of the Ondo State governor, Olusegun Mimiko, by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) At the 6th Session of World Urban Forum held in Naples, Italy from September 1-7, 2012, which had in attendance over 5,000 participants from 114 countries around the world, the incumbent ...

UN-Habitat Executive Director Dr. Joan Clos last Wednesday in Naples, Italy, launched the State of World Cities Report 2012/2013.   Titled ‘The Prosperity of Cities’, the report recommends that those engaged in development work need to explore a more inclusive notion of prosperity and development. According to the lead author Mr. Eduardo Moreno, there was an urgent need for a ...

As representatives of governments and city authorities of over 100 countries discuss the future of the world’s urban centres in the Italian city of Naples (between 1 and 7 September 2012), Amnesty International has called on all government delegates at the Sixth World Urban Forum (WUF6) to respect the right to housing and stop forced evictions. Officials of the organisation ...

Tina Armstrong-Ogbonna recalls a recent experience when, against all odds, she offered a helping hand to a dying man on the streets of Lagos   My office is located at a very strategic position between Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway and the Government Residential Area (GRA) in Ikeja.. It is along the popular Adekunle Fajuyi Way. When you step outside the gate you ...

Participants at the premier global conference on cities and urban issues – sixth World Urban Forum (WUF6) – holding in Naples, Italy next month have till Friday to complete their registration, the organisers have said. The WUF, a bi-yearly event that brings together key stakeholders, is believed to be the most comprehensive international forum for deliberations on urbanisation and its ...

On July 10 2011, Lagos experienced a downpour that lasted for over six hours, claiming lives and destroying properties in the bustling city. About a year later and several weeks ago, the Atlantic Ocean, swelled by periods of continuous rainfall, surged into neighbouring communities, sacking residents from their homes. The raging flood waters spared no one within its vicinity, including ...

Environmental science writer, Tina Armstrong-Ogbonna, relates her experience as the controversial Makoko demolition saga unfolded in Lagos   I recently participated in the filming of a documentary on flooding and erosion in Lagos State sponsored by a non-governmental organisation. The focus of the documentary in Lagos was to highlight people, places and communities adversely affected by flooding and erosion. The ...

By investing in infrastructure, security and the people, depressed cities in Nigeria can be turned around – just as examples in the United States have shown. US Ambassador to Nigeria, Terrence McCulley, who made the submission recently in a presentation at the 50th Anniversary Lecture of the University of Lagos’ Faculty of Environmental Sciences, urged the authorities to embrace good ...