Publisher's Synopsis
This book offers a case study of urban development policies in one developing country, Nigeria. Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, provides the reader with an understanding of how even a developing country with large revenues derived from oil production cannot successfully deal with its burgeoning urban population without intelligent urban planning and a proper regard for indigenous African traditions. The book provides the writings of both academic geographers and urban planners who analyze past urban development policies in Nigeria, particularly policies from the oil boom years of the 1970s and early 1980s and recommend urban development strategies for the future. The book covers a wide range of topics, including regional planning, rural development, land policy, socioeconomic development, environmental impacts, transportation, real estate markets and housing design. Following in the tradition of Jane Jacobs, Professor Taylor believes that only a higher level of urbanisation can produce the necessary outcomes of declining infant mortality and fertility in developing countries. While an æurban biasÆ in national policy making should be discouraged, nevertheless, the key to overall national development policy is the creation of indigenous city regions. The book can be used as a guide or text for urban planning in developing countries, as well as a resource book for urban geographers.
