The state of solid waste management in cities of most developing countries is fast assuming the scale of a major social and environmental challenge. In Sub-Saharan Africa in particular, the combined influence of poverty, population growth and rapid urbanization has tended to worsen the situation. The gravity of this problem is perhaps best reflected in the level of attention given to it in the United Nations (UN) Millennium Declaration. Three of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) outlined in the declaration have waste or resource efficiency implications. In response to the waste challenge many developed countries have embarked upon ambitious environmental reforms, recording remarkable advances in best practises and sustainable management of their Municipal Solid Waste (MSW). However, many developing countries such as Nigeria have fared less well in this regard as a result of several barriers militating against sustainable management of MSW. The principal aim of this research is therefore to carry out a critical analysis of the various barriers as well as success factors that affect the sustainable management of MSW using Abuja, Nigeria, as a case study. The study adopts a largely quantitative methodological approach, employing waste composition analysis of samples from the case study area, questionnaire survey and focus group interviews of stakeholders in MSW management as key methods for generation of data. Results from analysis of data, using the Statistical Programme for the Social Sciences (SPSS), indicate that between 65-70% of MSW samples from Abuja is biodegradable, mostly comprising of high wet weight and high moisture content kitchen wastes. On the other hand between 11%-30% of MSW samples from the City comprises mostly of non-degradable but recyclable materials such as glass, metals and cans, non-ferrous metals and waste electrical and electronic equipment. The implication of the high levels of moisture content in the biodegradable components is that samples are not suitable for incineration but are ideal for composting and other mechanical and biological management options. Data analysis also reveals that the main barriers to sustainable MSW management in the City include low public awareness/education on MSW management, obsolete and insufficient equipment and funding limitations. On the other hand, the most important success factor affecting sustainable MSW management in Abuja was found to be the bourgeoning City population which has a huge potential for uptake of recycled products. In summary, this research concludes that the factors affecting MSW management in Abuja are typical of many tropical urban environments. Fundamental shifts in current practises towards waste prevention; driven by a structured public education programme in MSW management is recommended, so as to bring about a more sustainable management regime. As a result of resource and time limitations, it was not possible to complete several potential lines of investigation related to this study. To fully understand the character of the Abuja waste stream however, further chemical characterization including proximate and ultimate analysis is required. Future research in this genre must endeavour to collect data from a larger sample to increase the precision of the analysis and to enable firmer conclusions to be drawn.

The Nigerian transport system has been facing challenges due to the imbalance in the transport system. Goods and passenger movements in Nigeria are performed mainly by road, with the railway and inland waterways playing significant, but less important roles. The dominance of road transport in Nigeria has placed obstacles in the way of economic development and has reduced the quality of life for citizens as the large number of vehicles required to meet demand causes congestion and parking issues and, in the main, citizens suffer with high levels of local associated pollution and low levels of security and safety. Decision-makers need support to make the right decisions. Precise and relevant information are required to give a clear overall view of the issues at stake and to monitor the benefits of implementing efficient public transport systems. This research has identified the need to develop an organized, effective and efficient transport system in Nigeria. Key Performance indicators were identified and developed for the Nigerian transport sector, which were used for the survey. A transport users’ survey was carried out in four cities (Lagos, Warri, Ughelli and Benin) in Nigeria, with 474 participants in total comprising both male and female between the age ranges of 20-70, the results of the survey was analysed and Lagos RII values were the lowest among the four cities falling below 0.60. However there is a similar case of low RII values between the four Cities, which was Security during evening/night and Accessibility during evening/night. The UK survey results was also analysed and the RII values were above 0.80 indicating a very high performance of the UK transport system. Data on highway robbery incidents in Nigeria was also collected and analysed and it was found out that there will be a continuous increase in highway robbery incidents in Nigeria if adequate security measures are not put in place. A Strategic Benchmarking was done between Nigeria and United Kingdom because the United Kingdom is a developed country with a more organized transport system compared to Nigeria hence it was seen as a best practice. Also the spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was done between the United Kingdom and Nigeria survey results and there was a perfect positive correlation (rs =1) for Motor parks/Bus stops/Stations and very strong positive correlation (rs = 0.9) for Vehicles. In other words Nigeria can adopt the United Kingdom public transport strategy into its transport system because it will have a very positive impact on the development of the Nigerian transport sector. Therefore, having identified the challenges of the Nigerian transport sector and possible solutions, a Strategic Action Plan has been proposed for the Nigerian transport sector to: assist policy makers in making decisions, assist security personnel in taking proactive measures against transport insecurity, enhance the overall performance of the transport system.

Background/Aim: Historical evidences indicate that maternal health care by a skilled birth attendant is one of the key strategies for maternal survival. However, the rate of maternity care utilisation and reduction of maternal death is very low in Nigeria. This study was designed to investigate factors influencing access to emergency obstetric care with a view to guiding programmatic efforts targeted at overcoming these barriers and also contribute to health reforms in Nigeria. Hence, the need to understand factors influencing access to emergency obstetric care in Nigeria using the Socio-ecological Model (SEM) and Gender and Development (GAD) to identify associated factors operating at different levels. Methods: A mixed method was employed for this study. Data collection used questionnaires and in-depth interviews. Questionnaires were distributed to 330 respondents of which 318 of them were retrieved and qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted for 6 participants. Data collection were done using a sequential approach. The study was conducted in one of the tertiary health facilities in Nigeria from January-April, 2015, amongst mothers aged 15-45 years meeting the study inclusion criteria. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used in analysing the quantitative data. Bivariate and logistic regressions were conducted for the quantitative data whilst a qualitative content analysis was done for the qualitative data. Results: The study established that education, income level, costs associated with seeking care, distance and time taken to travel were significantly associated with maternity healthcare services utilisation. Quality of service, staff attitude and women’s autonomy showed consistent significant association with maternal health care utilisation. Conclusions: The study concludes that; costs of treatment, distance and time, income level, staff attitude and women’s autonomy were critical in determining women utilisation of maternity care services. Recommendation: As an outcome of this research, best practice framework has been developed. The framework presents a coherent and systematic approach for achieving sustainable MH by providing a roadmap for instituting measures at the policy, health facility, community and at the individual levels, taking into account factors that are likely to promote or impede the achievement of sustainable MH.

Project risk assessment is an effective tool for planning and controlling cost, time and achieving the technical performance of a building construction project. Construction projects often face a lot of uncertainties, which places building construction projects at the risk of cost, time overruns as well as poor quality delivery. Considering the limited resources of developing countries, there is need to complete building projects on-time, on-budget, and to meet optimal quality hence, risk management is an important part of the decision making process in construction industry as it determines the success or failure of construction projects. In line with this need, this research aims to establish a system to improve the time, cost and quality performance of building construction projects in developing countries, through a comprehensive risk management model that ensures the expectations of clients are met. To achieve the aim of this research, a mixed methodological approach was adopted. Through the review of literature, a conceptual risk management framework suitable to elaborate risk assessment of building construction projects especially for developing countries was developed. A questionnaire survey using a nonprobability sampling technique was conducted to elicit information from construction professionals in Nigeria to assess their perception of 79 risk factors identified from literature review based on the likelihood of occurrence and impact on projects using a five point scale. Responses from 343 construction professionals were drawn from 305 contractors and subcontractors and 38 clients (private and public) within the Nigerian construction sector. Response data was subjected to descriptive statistics to depict the frequency distribution and central tendency of responses. Subsequently, the risk acceptability matrix (RAM) was adopted to categorise and prioritise risk factors. 27 critical risks that affect building construction projects were identified. A Bayesian Belief Network (BBN) model was developed by structural learning and used to examine the cause and effect relationship amongst the 27 critical risk factors. The developed BBN model was subjected to validation using a multiple case study of two building construction projects in Nigeria. The result showed the interrelation between the 27 risk factors and how they contributed to cost and time overruns as well as quality problems. The critical risks directly affecting the cost of building construction project were: fluctuation of material prices; health and safety issues; bribery and corruption; material wastage; poor site management and supervision; and time overruns. The critical factors identified to directly affect quality were: supply of defective materials; working under harsh conditions; improper construction methods; lack of protective equipment; ineffective time allocation; poor communication between involved stakeholders; and unsuitable leadership style. Time overruns on building construction projects was directly caused by: quality problems; low productivity; improper construction methods; poor communication between involved parties; delayed payments in contracts; and poor site management and supervision. As a consolidation of the findings of this research, a BBN model for identifying risk factors that directly affect time, cost and quality on building construction projects has been developed which has the potential for assisting construction stake holders to manage risks on their projects. In view of the findings, a best practice system for risk management in building construction projects in Nigeria has been developed with an implementation guide to help building construction practitioners to successfully implement risk management on their building construction projects. Suitable risk responses, also in the form of recommendations have been identified. The strategies include actions to be taken to respond to risks based on their perceived significance or acceptability as well as some positive risk responses, such as exploiting, sharing, enhancing and accepting, and other negative risk responses, such as avoidance, mitigation transfer and acceptance

Satisfaction has consistently been a source of concern to clients, stakeholders and customers in the construction industry globally. In Nigeria, despite the huge financial investments in construction and its associated economic benefits, construction projects are characterized by poor quality in aesthetics, high costs in maintenance and failure to meet or exceed the customers’ quality expectations. An even greater challenge is faced when considering government construction projects as re- occurring issues like on time delivery, operational and aesthetic excellence and even project abandonment continue to resurface. Although previous studies have developed models and frameworks to improve customer satisfaction in product and service organisations, researchers have not treated in detail issues involving customer satisfaction within projects which do not have profits and financial gains as the driving force such as government construction projects. The aim of this research was to develop a framework that would identify particular areas associated with project quality where adequate resources could be channelled in order to enhance customer satisfaction in government road construction projects in Rivers State, Nigeria. Sequel to an extensive literature review, a conceptual framework was developed to establish the relationship between three attributes of project quality namely performance, reliability and aesthetics and two attributes of customer satisfaction measured through contractor re-patronage and referral. 503 road construction practitioners within the Port Harcourt metropolis of Rivers State, Nigeria participated in a quantitative survey and data obtained was subjected to stepwise multiple regression analysis. The results showed that a strong, positive and significant relationship existed between the attributes of project quality and customer satisfaction with project quality explaining 54.8% of the variance in contractor re-patronage and 61.8% of the variance in contractor referral. Performance was however found to have the greatest effect on contractor re-patronage (R2=.550, adjusted R2=.548) while aesthetics had the highest effect on contractor referral (R2=.572, adjusted R2= .571). Reliability was found to have the weakest effect on customer satisfaction and could be attributed to its civil and structural Engineering links which are either unknown or invisible to the customer. 10 structured interviews with construction professionals were used to validate the developed framework and justify the research design. The findings support the framework and suggest that the knowledge and analysis of the construction costs, the use of competent professional experts, the provision of a revised legal framework for road construction, delegation of responsibility for road maintenance, avoidance of project abandonment, identifying and mitigating construction risks, adopting a strategy for project monitoring, enforcing health and safety considerations, provision of innovative excitement factors as well as post project evaluations were essential for enhancing project quality and customer satisfaction from government road construction projects. The study advocates for an adoption of the framework and concludes by making recommendations including the incorporation of government and private construction practitioners and further identifies areas for future study.

In recent years there has been an increase in the adoption of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in organisations, as the use of ICT causes some form of revolution in business practices. All over the world, ICT has greatly transformed the manner in which companies conduct business. However, there is considerable evidence to show that Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries, particularly those in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), are yet to reap the full benefits offered by ICT as compared to their counterparts in the developed countries. Although the contribution of SMEs’ is of notable importance to many countries’ economy, yet those in developing countries lag far behind. For SMEs to survive and remain competitive in the current highly competitive business environment there is a need to adopt and use ICT effectively, in order to attain some level of competitive advantage. This research investigates factors affecting the adoption and effective utilisation of ICT, with particular emphasis on SMEs in Nigeria. It is presumed that SMEs’ adoption of ICT in Nigeria will provide opportunities to accelerate the country’s socio-economic growth as it will offer Nigeria the chance to ‘leapfrog’ some stages of development. The methodology adopted in undertaking this study is the qualitative research approach although a survey was used at the initial stage, to provide an exploratory snapshot of the SMEs in context. This research has empirically identified key factors motivating ICT adoption in Nigerian SMEs, and benefits resulting from the use of ICT in their organisational performance. Factors affecting the adoption and effective utilisation of ICT in Nigerian SMEs were also identified. Following this, strategies were proposed which led to the development of a framework that will assist to increase the adoption and effective use of ICT amongst SMEs in Nigeria and also, aid the further deployment of more sophisticated ICT solutions by these SMEs. The framework was validated via a survey and analysed with the aid of SPSS software. The findings obtained from the validation procedure indicated that the framework is valuable and suitable for use in practice since the research shows that the majority of respondents accepted the research findings and recommendations for success. This research offers recommendations that will assist the Nigerian government, stakeholders such as ISPs, as well as owners/managers of SMEs, in resolving the problems confronting SMEs in Nigeria.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a worldwide problem, with more than 34 million people infected with HIV/AIDS in 2011. At the end of 2011, in Nigeria, an estimated 3.7% of the adult population were living with HIV/AIDS. HIV services in Nigeria are secondary-care led, involving multidisciplinary teams and access to free antiretroviral. However, evaluations of service provision from both patient and healthcare professional perspectives, especially, pharmacists in Nigeria have never been conducted, and are the aims of this research. This study involved grounded theory methodology, using In-depth semi-structured interviews with adults infected with HIV, pharmacists, and administrators involved in the management and care of those patients at Maitama District Hospital in Abuja. HIV pharmacists working for the NHS in the UK were interviewed for comparative purposes. Thirty-five patients were interviewed. Five concepts were identified that influenced how they accessed hospital services after diagnosis. These include faith in God and antiretroviral, social issues with emphasis on HIV stigma and discrimination, patient journeys at the hospital with delays and repeat visits, obstacles such as ARV unavailability and their expectations. Also, five concepts were identified from the pharmacists’ interviews which include clinical service, impressions of service provided, social issues the patients encountered, the obstacles faced with clinical service provided and expectations for improvement. Ten patients were shadowed on their clinic days to observe the patient journey articulated. Furthermore, the administrators interviewed re-affirmed the opinions of the patients and pharmacists about many patients attending HIV clinic, few staff attending to patients, medicines unavailability, especially ARV drugs, and lack of working space for staff. Delays, few pharmacists/many patients and shortage of ART as barriers to service provision ii emerged as dominant themes across the three groups of interviewees in Nigeria. Also, it has been found that there is a wide gap between HIV patients’ hospital management in the UK and Nigeria as regards availability of antiretroviral, staff strength, number of patients in attendance on clinic days and weekly clinic days. Pharmacy was found to have a substantial role in the management of HIV/AID patients but it appears from this study that service improvements, both human and material resources are needed. Twenty three recommendations, which are further synthesised into six potential areas, are made, which, if implemented, would dramatically improve the service provision for HIV/AIDS patients at Maitama District Hospital.

The thesis principally examines the three categories of petroleum arrangements in Nigeria and gives examples of other developing countries. This study presents a systematic and in-depth analysis of both the structure and substance of some modern petroleum arrangements that have emerged in recent years and examines, the financial benefits of such associations. The thesis is divided into two parts. Part 1 deals with participation agreements, joint venture and production sharing contracts, whilst Part 2 examines mutual benefit and marginalisation of the host communities. These agreements are usually long-term, without any mechanism for renegotiations and are shrouded in secrecy and confidential clauses. A good example is the NNPC and Ashland oil contract. Due to this lacuna, it is usually the practice for renegotiation to be done through the passing of a legal notice or new law, resulting in the presence of quite a few laws in the petroleum industry and the attendant mystification. This practice would have been simple if renegotiation clauses were enshrined in the agreement, enabling changing circumstances; and confidential clauses removed, aiding transparency in the transaction. The study finds that some of the laws and the regulations are very old and clearly out of style with the times, not to mention in an industry that is forever changing and dynamic and further affected and determined by international factors. Further, the study also found that the activities of the oil and gas companies, to a great extent have not employed international best practices or remained compliant with the existing laws of the nation; resulting in oil spillages, various forms of pollution, serious health hazards, gross environmental degradations, rural agricultural destruction, distortion of social harmony and peace that exist in, and between host communities and have fuelled underdevelopment in these communities. As long as these social inequalities and injustice continue, human rights violations, gross mismanagement of natural resources, corruption in all forms and sizes exist and the activities of the participants in that sector are not addressed satisfactorily, so shall poverty, insecurity and serious threat to national existence and survival continue.

The extant entrepreneurship literature is replete with competing narratives about the concept of informal sector (IS). Also, IS’ potential as a source of income and the behavioural tendencies of operators in the sector remain highly contested but under-researched. In particular, not much is known about the incentives and the motivations for engaging in informal economic activity from the perspective of Sub-Saharan African (SSA) context where a significant proportion of all economic activities are informal. Thus, the lack of conceptual clarity and consensus about the underlying factors driving individuals into informal economic activity constitutes a major knowledge gap. To fill this gap, this study seeks to clarify the domain of IS from a SSA viewpoint, and through this paves the way for a more holistic understanding of the behavioural tendencies and motivations of IS operators in SSA. Specifically relying on the institutional, social exclusion, and personality trait theoretical frameworks, the study demonstrates how a combination of separate yet related phenomena of personality traits, institutional factors, and more importantly, situational factors that manifest as perceptions of social exclusion serve as the incentives and the motivations to engage in informal economic activity in SSA. To achieve its goal, qualitative primary data obtained through thirty-eight semi-structured interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using Nvivo. Firstly, the study found that institutional ambiguity, institutional delinquency, institutional passivity, and institutional incongruence are sources of voids in Nigeria's institutional framework that influence an individual to enter the IS. Secondly, social exclusion regarding lack of access to requirements such as finance and formal education to start and sustainably operate a business influences people to enter into the IS. Lastly, the findings indicate that personality traits’ influence regarding the decision to engage in informal economic activities is dependent on individual circumstances. These are valuable contributions to the stock of knowledge about the IS. Particularly, the identification and categorisation of four specific institutional voids and partitioning of the sources of exclusion; the finding that in adverse economic circumstances personality traits could influence potential opportunity-entrepreneurs to start-up in the IS; the finding about the role of trade associations; and the new understanding about the collaborative dimension of corruption in the context of IS practice, represent a significant contribution of this study. These contributions are valuable not just in terms of creating new windows of research opportunities, but also for evidence-based policy relating to the IS that is appropriately targeted at relevant groups. This is in addition to facilitating collaborations for business support, enlightenment, improved business practice, and inclusive growth.