Assessing the effect of urban informal economic activity on the quality of the built environment for sustainable urban development in Lagos, Nigeria

Informal economic activities not only contribute to the economic growth of most countries, they also have a significant effect on the built environment. This study assesses the effect of urban informal economic activity (UIEA) on the quality of the built environment in residential areas of the metropolis of Lagos, Nigeria. It adopts a case study methodology with survey research design, disproportionate sample size, and multi-stage sampling techniques. Data collection utilises questionnaire surveys and personal observations from 1345 informal economic operators in 52 administrative wards of the 16 local government areas (LGAs) of Lagos. This research uses descriptive and inferential statistical tools for analysis and interpretation of 973 completed questionnaires (73.9%) returned from the survey. The results reflect an adverse effect of UIEA on the quality of the built environment in residential areas with regard to aesthetic disorder, street trading, traffic jams, visual obstructions, indiscriminate disposal of waste and land use conversion. This finding implies that a significant inter-group relationship exists between the effects of UIEA on the quality of the built environment, and that UIEA creates a severe increase in environmental challenges in Lagos. Recommendations include policy formulation, integrated socio-economic and environmental planning design approaches for curtailing these challenges and improving the quality of the built environment.