African Voices - Transport Systems and Well-being in Nigeria

The Institute of Advanced Studies is delighted to host this lecture given by Dr Ibidun Adelekan (University of Ibadan, Nigeria) and chaired by Dr Catherine Holloway (UCL), part of the African Voices series, organised by the African Studies Research Centre.

Transport systems facilitate people's access to economic opportunities, social services, markets, places of recreation and other services, and have a key role in the economy. There are also several negative effects of transport systems on quality of life. Understanding and maximising the potential in the nexus of transport, socio-economic development and human well-being has become important to planners and policy makers in developed countries. There is need to factor in such relationships in the planning of transportation systems in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa.

This lecture examines transport systems and the human well-being nexus in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, in the context of socio-economic development and environmental change. The evolving nature of risks associated with the development of Nigeria's transport systems in relation to the pattern of social and economic development since the commencement of large-scale exploitation of crude oil in the country will be analysed. The environmental dimension in the form of climate change and the increased rate of urbanisation as additional stresses on transport systems will also be explored. The combined effects on different dimensions of human well-being in Nigeria and specifically in urban settings will be described. It is expected that this lecture will provide new insights into contextual issues of socio-economic development, environmental change, transport systems and quality of life in Africa.

Dr Ibidun Adelekan is a geographer by training and a Reader in the Department of Geography at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria where she is engaged in teaching and research. Her research interests are in the areas of climate-society interactions and human dimensions of global environmental change, including the vulnerability/resilience of human-environment systems to climate change. Dr Adelekan is well published in reputable international scientific journals and books and is a contributing author to the Africa chapter of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report. She is a member of the scientific panel of the International Geographical Union (IGU) International Year of Global Understanding.

This lecture will be followed by tea from 2.30-3.30pm which all attendees are welcome to attend.