1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background to the Study
Cities the world over are the dominating forces in the organization of human population.
As the world most crowded places, cities continue to show increase in urban population. This increase leads to a growing urbanization trend. Duru and Nnaji (2008) defined urbanization as the increase in the population of cities in proportion to the region's rural population.
Urbanization is the outcome of social, economic and political developments that lead to concentration and growth of large cities, changes in land use and transformation from rural to metropolitan pattern of organization and governance. Rapid growth of towns and cities has been common feature of the developing world (Aderamo, 2008).
Although urbanization is the driving force for modernization, economic growth and development, there is increasing concern about the effects of expanding cities, principally on human health, livelihoods and the environment. The implications of rapid urbanization and demographic trends for employment, food security, water supply, shelter and sanitation, especially the disposal of wastes (solid and liquid) that the cities produce are staggering (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, 1992).
The process of urbanization is believed to be connected with levels of development and some assert that, for a country to develop there is the need for an increased level of industrialization as it is generally accepted that there cannot be urbanization without rapid economic growth (Tettey, 2005). The pattern of urbanization in developing countries, particularly Africa, however, is creating some concern that it may be generating a lot of development problems in the process of its growth.
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