Integrating Geo-Spatial Analysis and Micro-Level Land Use Typologies for Sustainable Urban Planning in Nigeria

This study combines micro-level built-up landuse typologies with geospatial analytics to assess urban morphology, functional heterogeneity, and planning conformity in Ile-Ife. Built-ups in the 21 political wards of the study area were disaggregated into six categories (residential, commercial, institutional, industrial, mixed-use, and recreation) using an object-based image analysis (OBIA) approach applied to high-resolution IKONOS imagery. Spatial landscape metrics (e.g., patch density (PD), edge density (ED), Shannon’s diversity index (SDI), aggregation index (AI), and Global Moran’s I) were used to assess fragmentation, heterogeneity, and spatial clustering, while conformity analysis compared observed landuse distributions with national zoning standards. The results reveal significant spatial fragmentation in peripheral wards, which are expanding rapidly in area. The patch density and edge density values of most peripheral wards are relatively high, indicating sprawl and a lack of coordination in residential development. Mean Shannon’s diversity index (0.62) indicates mild to moderate diversity of landuses in Ile-Ife. Residential land use is highly concentrated having aggregation index values of more than 85%. The industrial and recreational uses are getting fragmented and dispersed, and are at a considerable distance from the populated Wards. The analysis also shows a notable positive spatial autocorrelation, indicating the presence of ward clusters that exhibit a significant result. This paper identifies severe government weakness and structural limitations of urban areas and also shows that the integration of micro-level landuse typologies with geospatial metrics can help implement an effective regulatory process for evidence-based decision-making, resilient urban development that is aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 11.