article · Area Development and Policy
An examination of the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Lagos, Nigeria, reveals critical challenges in land governance and physical planning. The investigation focuses on processes including land acquisition, compensation, resettlement, planning permits, development control, and environmental impact assessments. Findings indicate significant deficiencies in compensation delivery and resettlement schemes, which have left indigenous communities economically vulnerable. Additionally, statutory frameworks such as the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority Act concentrate primarily on driving economic growth, neglecting broader environmental and social impacts. To address these vulnerabilities, the research advocates for a more balanced framework for megacity initiatives that integrates social wellbeing and environmental protection directly into economic development planning.
Large-scale infrastructure projects often aim to accelerate economic growth but can severely disrupt local populations. Identifying where governance frameworks and legislation fail to protect displaced residents allows policymakers, urban planners, and civil society to design fairer compensation models, enforce environmental safeguards, and ensure megacity developments do not marginalise vulnerable communities.
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ABSTRACT This paper considers the land-governance (acquisition, compensation and resettlement) and physical planning (planning permits, development-control mechanism and environmental-impact assessment) processes surrounding Lekki Free Trade Zone (LFTZ) in Lagos, Nigeria, and the effects of the LFTZ on the lives and livelihoods of the inhabitants of indigenous communities affected by the project. The study revealed significant gaps in the payment of compensation and resettlement arrangements, leaving many residents economically vulnerable, and significant gaps in the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) Act, which emphasizes economic development in free-trade zones, without consideration of the social and environmental consequences. A more balanced approach to the megacity’s development is proposed, incorporating social and environmental considerations alongside economic objectives.
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DOI: 10.1080/23792949.2017.1399804
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