The Pattern, Direction and Factors Responsible for Urban Growth in a Developing African City: A Case Study of Ogbomoso

摘要

The study focuses on the pattern, direction as well as factors responsible for urban growth in a developing African city. It identifies the pattern and direction of growth in the study area as well as factors responsible for the observed trend of growth. The study adopts the use of structured and well-designed questionnaire. The questionnaires were administered to cover the core, (high density) intermediate (medium density) and low-density area. Then questionnaire were administered to residents in every 5th building along eight major roads that take off from the city centre. It also covers surrounding villages that fall within 10km radius, from the city center. A total of 708 questionnaires were administered based on 20% of the overall buildings counted on both sides of the major roads considered. Data were also obtained from vegetation and land use map of Nigeria on a scale 1:250,000. These maps are imageries taken in space for 1978 and 1995.Maps of Ogbomoso for both 1914 and 1949 were obtained and digitized using Arc view3.2 to determine the pattern and direction of the city growth. The findings reveal that the pattern and direction of growth is in all directions but more concentrated in the Northern direction along the Ogbomoso-Ilorin road axis. The major factors responsible for the growth of the city as indicated by the respondents are urbanization (83.4%) education development (96.9%) and transportation (97.5%). In conclusion, Government should make effort in conjunction with planning agencies to put in place a functional master plan while incentives such as site and services should be provided to facilitate orderly development of the city.