Assessment of the Relationship between Urban Blight and Housing Quality in Minna

Abstract

The study assessed the relationship between urban blight and housing quality in Minna Niger State. The specific objectives of this paper include the examination of the condition of housing in the study area, causes of urban blight on one hand and its relationship with housing quality in Minna on the other. In carrying out this study, both primary and secondary data were sourced.The instruments of data collection employed in this study include personal observation and structured questionnaires. A total of 400 households were randomly selected across five communities in the study area based on the proportion of the estimated household population. The data collected were subjected to statistical analysis using frequencies, percentages and regression. The results revealed that high incidences of rural-urban and urban-urban migration, poverty, lack of maintenance and poor enforcement of planning laws are the most significant factors responsible for the emergence of urban blight and poor housing quality in the study area. The regression analysis result shows a significant relationship between urban blight and housing quality. It can be seen from the result that of the 9 independent variables included in the regression model, 7 were significant predictors of housing quality. The research recommends maintenance and provision, improvement of infrastructural facilities, implementation of planning laws so as to guide development and also improve the quality of housing in order to reduce urban blight.