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2022 World Habitat Day

Aribigbola Afolabi

T  he World Habitat Day is marked on the first Monday of October each year since the day was recognized by the United Nations to reflect on the state of our towns and cities and the basic right of all to adequate shelter. The 2022 edition of the annual event has come and gone as usual in several countries of the world, but unfortunately the day was not really celebrated in most parts of Nigeria including Ondo State as the usual practice since the great event commenced in 1986 following its adoption by United Nations General Assembly the previous year.

One begins to wonder the lull in this special day designed to draw attention of people and governments to the precarious conditions or situations of our towns and cities as well as people’s access to housing  especially in developing societies including Nigeria. The non-celebration of the day in Nigeria this year, was it a lack of lack of interest or appreciation of the significance of the day to addressing the hydra headed cities problems in the country? Was it a lack of motivation or paucity of funds that is widespread in the country.

Could the lack of celebration of the World Habitat Day in most states of Nigeria a realization that there are no problems confronting Nigerian cities or housing provision? Or is it because the problems of the cities in Nigeria are humongous that those responsible with finding solutions to them have become overwhelmed and helpless tackling the challenges in line with acceptable global best practices? I have been ruminating over all these issues and questions since this year’s celebration on October 3, without the usual full participation in public lectures and other stimulating activities by Nigerians.

The 2022 World Habitat Day (WHD 2022) with the theme “Mind the Gap. Leave No One and Place Behind” focused on the problem of growing inequality and challenges in cities and human settlements. Specifically, World Habitat Day 2022 sought to draw global  attention to the growing inequalities and vulnerabilities that have been exacerbated by the triple ‘C’ crises of COVID-19, climate and conflict in different parts of the world.  If the event has been well celebrated in the country, it would have provided good opportunities to reflect and reexamine how the country was faring in tackling the challenges of COVID-19, climate change and conflicts in different parts of the country. Surprisingly, this was not to be as the day was not observed or faintly observed in some states. This is against the background that the country like most developing countries is not doing enough to address these problems facing humanity in contemporary times. And the glaring disparities in the access to and consumption of housing and its essential facilities in all parts of the country.

Of course, the day like in most societies of the world where the day was marked would have been utilised to draw government and citizens attention to the problems of Nigerian cities that are getting worse over the years due to uncontrolled population growth, lack of attention and inadequate investment in cities facility development and improvement.  Perhaps, the traditional professional groups and government departments and agencies that are concerned with the issue of city and housing development do not have the resources and the required support for this years celebration and the hence non observance of the day as their usual practice. This reason may not be sufficient not to mark the day. Because there are cogent and unassailable reasons to mark the day as the usual practice in the country. For one, most of the cities in Nigeria are poorly developed lacking in basic facilities and services that make for good urban living. Therefore, the day ought to have been used to again draw attention of Nigerians to the problems facing the Nigerian cities. This was not to be the case as the day was largely neglected in several states of Nigeria including Ondo State that are always leading in the celebration and urban development and improvement endeavours.

The country does not celebrate the Day like most prosperous societies in the more developed societies against the background of the multivarious problems facing the cities in the country and housing of her citizenry. Some of the prominent problems confronting cities in Nigeria include inadequate and lack of facilities and services such as potable water supply, inadequate and epileptic power supply, poor and lack of access to basic services such as education, health, public transport and host of others. In the area of housing, the problem of shortage is mounting as majority of Nigerans are poorly housed as many places people are living cannot be qualified to be called housing. Housing and associated facilities (such as water, electricity and waste disposal are grossly inadequate. Millions live in substandard environments called slums, plagued by squalor and grossly inadequate social amenities, such as, shortage of schools, poor health facilities and lack of opportunities for recreation among others. Lack of infrastructure is one of the most pressing problems in Nigerian cities. In many Nigerian cities, the city centres are decaying without any programme of rehabilitation while new urban peripheries develop without planning or the necessary infrastructure. Intra-city mobility is greatly hampered by poor planning and inefficient urban land use. The deplorable and pathetic housing conditions in which the vast majority of urban dwellers in Nigeria live.

Also, transportation which is one of the ancillary services associated with housing. Its efficiency has been known to affect urban living generally. The problems range from failure to provide adequate transport facilities, gross inadequacies of public transport, crowded buses, poor infrastructure to environmental pollution producing the incursion of commercial motorcycles as public transport services with its associated consequences of accidents and public disorder among other problems.

Housing inequality that manifest in a divide between the wealthy that reside in expensive highbrow neighbourhood supplied abundantly with facilities and services that make living conducive, whereas the poor are crowded in unhealthy housing with dilapidated infrastructure. In sum, everywhere in the cities, inequality manifest itself in different magnitude and dimensions.

In conclusion, from the above purpose of World Habitat Day and the precarious state of cities and housing, the celebration is essential to reveal and draw attention to these unacceptable situations that seem not to be receiving adequate attention and action towards finding realistic lasting solutions to them. Rather the professionals  championing its celebration and call for city improvement decided to keep quiet this year. These professionals in the built environment whose activities impinge on housing and urban Development as well as departments and agencies need to rise to the occasion of exposing the ills in Nigerian cities. One of the ways to achieve this noble assignment to continue to celebrate Word Habitat Day and other periods designated for arousing public interest on specific areas of human environment. This is necessary to be able to bring the desire change and improvement to Nigerian cities that are challenged in several areas. The issue of covid19, climate change and insecurity that constituted the focus of this year’s day are better addressed in the cities. Joining the world to celebrate the World Habitat Day will bring more benefits to Nigerian city dwellers that are suffering untold hardship in their quest to survive the debilitating environments. It will assist in finding solution to these problems that are increasing with time. In the future, the day should not be neglected but must be used to inform and educate the populace on the challenges of the cities.

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2022 World Habitat Day

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