Towards Context-Sensitive Urban Renewal in Nigeria Through Integrating Conservation, Rehabilitation and Redevelopment

Abstract

Urban renewal in Nigeria has frequently been approached through generalized upgrading or redevelopment schemes that insufficiently account for variations in physical deterioration, infrastructure conditions, social characteristics and local development constraints. This study examines how an integrated and context-sensitive framework combining conservation, rehabilitation and redevelopment can provide a more appropriate basis for renewing deteriorating urban neighbourhoods. Using Jushi-Waje in Sabon Gari Local Government Area of Kaduna State as an empirical case, the study employed field survey, physical observation, household questionnaire and spatial assessment to examine housing conditions, infrastructure, environmental quality, land-use organization and socio-economic characteristics. The evidence reveals differentiated patterns of deterioration rather than a uniform condition across the settlement. Areas with relatively lower environmental deterioration but poor roads and drainage were considered suitable for conservation and upgrading, while severely degraded and poorly serviced areas required rehabilitation or selective redevelopment. Inadequate infrastructure, indiscriminate waste disposal, substandard housing, weak development control and uncoordinated land-use transformation emerged as interconnected drivers of decline. The study therefore develops an integrated renewal framework that matches intervention intensity to local conditions while incorporating infrastructure upgrading, environmental improvement, community participation, economic revitalisation and long-term maintenance. The paper argues that context sensitivity should become a central principle of urban renewal policy in Nigeria. Rather than relying on uniform clearance or upgrading models, planning authorities should adopt evidence-based, spatially differentiated and socially responsive strategies capable of preserving viable urban assets while addressing severe forms of physical and functional decline.