The dynamics of city growth and the impact on urban land policies in developing countries

Abstract

The scale and dynamics of urban growth and what needs to be done to adequately deal with it should be understood by urban policymakers at any level of jurisdiction (national, state, metropolitan and local). This article provides a platform to discuss an integrated approach for analysing the phenomena of population growth and spatial spread. This is with a view to reflect on the policy implications (in the past, at present and what might likely be in the future) for urban development. It focuses on the combination of population and spatial growth of settlements and the potential to affect land delivery for housing production in some selected cities in Nigeria. The study utilises temporal data sets from published materials and past studies in addition to the recently processed imageries. It identifies intensification and urban sprawl as outputs of the interactions between the variables of urban growth, density control, urban physical characteristics and national land policy.