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Challenges and Opportunities Faced by Residents of Informal Settlements in Sustaining Their Livelihoods: Evidence from Karu Urban Area, Nasarawa State, Nigeria
Subject area: Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities · Area of research: Livelihoods in Informal Urban Settlements
DOI: 10.64388/IREV10I4-1724175
Abstract
Informal settlements dominate urban landscapes in developing countries, yet evidence on the specific challenges and opportunities residents face in sustaining livelihoods remains limited, particularly in Nigeria's peri-urban interface. This study identifies these challenges and opportunities in Karu Urban Area, Nasarawa State. A cross-sectional descriptive survey design was adopted, collecting data from 380 valid respondents out of 384 sampled through stratified and simple random sampling across four settlement strata (Karu Site, New Karu, Mararaba and New Nyanya, and Ado and Masaka) from an estimated population of 333,800. Structured, interviewer-administered questionnaires captured data on tenure insecurity, water and sanitation access, road access, crime and insecurity, market proximity, economic opportunities, community group membership, and access to microcredit. Descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, and mean Likert scores) were employed in Microsoft Excel. Findings reveal that tenure insecurity (66% agree/strongly agree it deters investment), poor water and sanitation (72%), poor road access (60%), and crime/insecurity (74%) are the dominant challenges, while proximity to urban markets (73%) constitutes the principal economic opportunity. Although 57% of respondents perceive economic opportunities within the settlement, 43% report none, revealing uneven access. Better market access (48%) and improved infrastructure (28%) are seen as the most effective improvement pathways, while access to credit (4%) is least emphasized, reflecting limited financial inclusion. Critically, 53.9% belong to community groups, but only 23.42% have access to microcredit, loans, or savings schemes, revealing a substantial gap between social organisation and institutional financial support. The study concludes that the binding constraint is less the absence of social organisation than the absence of formal financial and infrastructural enablement of that organisation. It recommends strengthening market linkages, expanding inclusive microfinance tailored to informal settlements, improving water, sanitation, and road infrastructure, and converting existing social capital into functioning cooperative structures through institutional support and multi-stakeholder partnerships.
Keywords
informal settlements; community livelihoods; challenges; opportunities; tenure insecurity; market access; microcredit; Karu Urban Area
How to cite this paper
@article{1724175,
author = {Stephen Mohammed Shamaki, B.B Mohammed, Adamu Eya Musa},
title = {Challenges and Opportunities Faced by Residents of Informal Settlements in Sustaining Their Livelihoods: Evidence from Karu Urban Area, Nasarawa State, Nigeria},
journal = {Iconic Research And Engineering Journals},
year = {2026},
volume = {10},
number = {4},
pages = {2939-2954},
issn = {2456-8880},
url = {https://www.irejournals.com/formatedpaper/1724175.pdf},
abstract = {Informal settlements dominate urban landscapes in developing countries, yet evidence on the specific challenges and opportunities residents face in sustaining livelihoods remains limited, particularly in Nigeria's peri-urban interface. This study identifies these challenges and opportunities in Karu Urban Area, Nasarawa State. A cross-sectional descriptive survey design was adopted, collecting data from 380 valid respondents out of 384 sampled through stratified and simple random sampling across four settlement strata (Karu Site, New Karu, Mararaba and New Nyanya, and Ado and Masaka) from an estimated population of 333,800. Structured, interviewer-administered questionnaires captured data on tenure insecurity, water and sanitation access, road access, crime and insecurity, market proximity, economic opportunities, community group membership, and access to microcredit. Descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentages, and mean Likert scores) were employed in Microsoft Excel. Findings reveal that tenure insecurity (66% agree/strongly agree it deters investment), poor water and sanitation (72%), poor road access (60%), and crime/insecurity (74%) are the dominant challenges, while proximity to urban markets (73%) constitutes the principal economic opportunity. Although 57% of respondents perceive economic opportunities within the settlement, 43% report none, revealing uneven access. Better market access (48%) and improved infrastructure (28%) are seen as the most effective improvement pathways, while access to credit (4%) is least emphasized, reflecting limited financial inclusion. Critically, 53.9% belong to community groups, but only 23.42% have access to microcredit, loans, or savings schemes, revealing a substantial gap between social organisation and institutional financial support. The study concludes that the binding constraint is less the absence of social organisation than the absence of formal financial and infrastructural enablement of that organisation. It recommends strengthening market linkages, expanding inclusive microfinance tailored to informal settlements, improving water, sanitation, and road infrastructure, and converting existing social capital into functioning cooperative structures through institutional support and multi-stakeholder partnerships.},
keywords = {informal settlements; community livelihoods; challenges; opportunities; tenure insecurity; market access; microcredit; Karu Urban Area},
month = {October},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.64388/IREV10I4-1724175}
}