Locational Characteristics of Informal Business Activities and Its Implications to Urban Planning in the City Centre of Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria
Abstract
The capacity of the informal businesses in a specific place to absorb the teeming population of the unemployed into the labour force has provided a substantial challenge to urban space planning and management not just in Nigeria but also in several other developing countries of the world. This study, therefore, assessed the locational characteristics of informal business activities and its implications to urban planning in the city centre of Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria with a view to making appropriate recommendations. The objectives of the study centred on identifying the locational characteristics of informal business activities and the urban planning implications. Quantitative method of research was employed. Cluster and simple random sampling were used to collect data from 273 informal business operators. The study findings reveal that food items and food wears are the prevalent commodities sold in the study area. Most of the business activities takes place on building frontages and road reserves and uses temporal and makeshift structures which cause urban blight. Although majority of the business operators rents the space, the choice of the business location was informed by its nearness to readily available market, and this consequently alters land-use and zoning arrangements. The result also reveals that most of the business operators are not registered. This means that they are operating without formal licenses and this causes difficulty in getting reliable data for effective urban planning purposes. The study therefore recommends that more structures be constructed and provided at affordable prices for rental. Facilities and services such as parking lots, waste collection and disposal systems as well as security should also be provided. The informal businesses should also be legalized and recognized through proper registration processes for improve revenue generation and economic growth.
Keywords
Location, Characteristics, Informal, Business, Activities and City Centre
Citations
IRE Journals:
Victor Samuel Atu, Adamu Isa Harir, Sani Jibir Dukku, Julius Andrew Baji, Sylvanus Usman Songden "Locational Characteristics of Informal Business Activities and Its Implications to Urban Planning in the City Centre of Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria" Iconic Research And Engineering Journals Volume 9 Issue 6 2025 Page 1175-1185 https://doi.org/10.64388/IREV9I6-1712780
IEEE:
Victor Samuel Atu, Adamu Isa Harir, Sani Jibir Dukku, Julius Andrew Baji, Sylvanus Usman Songden
"Locational Characteristics of Informal Business Activities and Its Implications to Urban Planning in the City Centre of Jos, Plateau State, Nigeria" Iconic Research And Engineering Journals, 9(6) https://doi.org/10.64388/IREV9I6-1712780
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