The effect of poorly controlled physical development on urban food production in Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract

Urban expansion, mainly occasioned by poorly controlled physical development, continues to pose severe threats to sustainable food production. While studies have concentrated more on food production in the hinterlands of Nigeria, there is a dearth of information on empirical investigations into urban food supply. This study, therefore, examined the effect of poorly controlled physical development on urban food production in Ibadan. An ecological footprint model was used to provide its theoretical anchor, while a longitudinal survey was the research design of choice. Both primary and secondary data were sourced. Geographical and remote sensing methods of analysis were used, with the primary focus being on Ibadan City and the dairy farm that has been converted to non-agricultural uses. This research revealed that Ibadan’s total urban area increased from 70.3584 ha in 1986 to 411.8877 ha in 2019. This expansion was accompanied by the loss of agricultural land, the depletion of water bodies, and agricultural land conversion. Validation of the research findings revealed a relatively high accuracy in terms of the Kappa value of 0.72 and an overall classification accuracy of 79.17% for 1986, of 0.84 and 88.33% for 2000, and of 0.91 and 92.5% for 2019. This studyrecommends that farmers should be trained on soilless farming practices such as aeroponics and hydroponics which both require relatively small portions of land to produce food.