Post by Henry Emeka (@Emekus)
What we can measure slum population in Nigeria 2000–2026
The most reliable metric is the number of people living in slum conditions, tracked by UN‑Habitat.
In 2000, Nigeria had 31.59 million people living in slums.
By 2022, this grew to 56.28 million — the highest recorded.
By 2026, an estimated 43.39% of Nigeria’s total population lived in slums.
Slum population has grown every year for 22+ years, driven by rapid urbanization and inadequate housing supply.
Why there is no official count of slums per state or LGA
Nigeria does not maintain a national registry of slum settlements. Reasons:
Slums are informal — they appear, expand, shrink, or disappear without formal documentation.
LGAs do not track slum boundaries, and states rarely conduct urban‑housing mapping.
UN‑Habitat measures deprivation, not settlement counts.
NBS datasets track housing conditions, not slum locations.
Thus, no dataset exists that lists “how many slums are in each of the 36 states or 774 LGAs from 1999–2026.
What we can infer while exact counts are impossible, we can identify major slum‑dense regions:
Lagos State
Makoko, Ajegunle, Ilaje, Badia, Ijora, and dozens more.
Lagos alone hosts hundreds of informal settlements (UN‑Habitat classification. No official numeric count
Kano State
Large slum belts around Fagge, Kurna, Kofar Ruwa, and Sabon Gari.
Rivers State Port Harcourt
Waterfront slums: Bundu, Njemanze, Abonnema Wharf, Marine Base.
FCT Abuja
Gishiri, Mpape, Durumi, Jabi Village, Kuchingoro.
Other states with large slum clusters
Oyo (Ibadan), Kaduna, Anambra (Onitsha), Enugu, Borno (Maiduguri), Plateau (Jos), Edo (Benin City).
These are settlement clusters, not official counts.
Summary Table what exists vs. what doesn’t
Metric Available? Source
Number of slums per state (1999–2026) ❌ No No Nigerian or UN dataset
Number of slums per LGA (774 LGAs) ❌ No No official tracking
Population living in slums (2000–2026) ✅ Yes UN‑Habitat
Urban housing deprivation data ✅ Yes UN‑Habitat, HDX
State‑level slum mapping ⚠️ Partial Academic studies, NGOs
https://statbase.org/data/nga-population-living-in-slums/?utm_source=copilot.com
https://geofactbook.com/countries/nigeria/population-living-in-slums?utm_source=copilot.com
0 likes · 0 comments · 0 shares