Causes of Urban Sprawl and Approaches for Its Containment in Zaria Urban Area, Nigeria

Volume: 11 | Issue: 02 | Year 2025 | Subscription
International Journal of Town Planning and Management
Received Date: 01/13/2025
Acceptance Date: 03/26/2025
Published On: 2025-07-02
First Page: 1
Last Page: 9

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By: Abdulaziz Shuaibu Kugu, Isa Musa, and Fatima Yahaya Mahmood.

1, 3. Student, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.
2. Assistant Lecturer, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Kaduna Polytechnic, Kaduna, Nigeria.

Abstract

This paper analyses the causes that are responsible for undesirable patterns of urban sprawl that have become a problem affecting excessive land consumption, rapid urban population growth, increasing transportation costs, loss of open spaces, and transforming the city into decayed areas. GIS 10.1 was used to calculate the total land area of the study area, sprawled communities, and that of the institutions that occupied more land within the Zaria Urban area. GIS was also used for the trend analysis of increased demand for urban land from 1976 to 2014. A reconnaissance survey of the Zaria Urban area was carried out to identify the two local government areas within the study area and observe the true causes of urban sprawl. The result of the findings revealed that the causes of urban sprawl in Zaria Urban area range from rapid urban population growth, increased demand for urban land, formation of institutions, poor urban planning and management, and social segregation. Recommendations were drawn from the identified causes for the containment of such sprawl.

Keywords: Urban sprawl, causes, population growth, land consumption, and Zaria urban area

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Citation:

How to cite this article: Abdulaziz Shuaibu Kugu, Isa Musa, and Fatima Yahaya Mahmood Causes of Urban Sprawl and Approaches for Its Containment in Zaria Urban Area, Nigeria. International Journal of Town Planning and Management. 2025; 11(02): 1-9p.

How to cite this URL: Abdulaziz Shuaibu Kugu, Isa Musa, and Fatima Yahaya Mahmood, Causes of Urban Sprawl and Approaches for Its Containment in Zaria Urban Area, Nigeria. International Journal of Town Planning and Management. 2025; 11(02): 1-9p. Available from:https://journalspub.com/publication/ijtpm/article=18764

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