DURING THE MAIDEN ANNUAL LECTURE HELD AT THE YAR ADUA CONFERENCE CENTRE ON TUESDAY, 5TH MAY 2026.
1.0 PREAMBLE We welcome you to this press conference organized as part of the Maiden Advocacy Lecture of the Nathaniel Atebije Foundation for Planning Advocacy. The purpose of this engagement is to draw national attention to the state of urban and regional planning in Nigeria, with particular emphasis on the implications for order, sustainability and human dignity in our cities and settlements. Let us emphatically note that urban planning or physical planning is not a luxury but a necessity in places where people want to grow sustainably. When planning is ignored, cities become disordered, unsafe, inefficient and unjust. Unfortunately, this trajectory is the experience across many parts of Nigeria today; yet called the giant of Africa. I would like to highlight some of these issues and make relevant recommendations to remedy or ameliorate the impacts on our people and their environments.
