Governing from above - solid waste management in Nigeria's new capital city of Abuja

The focus in this study is on governance in Nigeria's capital city of Abuja. The Abuja city government, like many others, is seeking to reduce its role in service delivery but it faces many challenges. Some are related to the position of Abuja in Nigeria's history and national politics. Others have to do with the complex set of relations and power structures at the local level.

The government saw the relocation to Abuja as an opportunity to propel the country into modernity but things have not turned out as planned. Contrary to the intention of the government and planners, Abuja houses the fastest growing slum in the country, Nyanya. This settlement provides the setting for the discussion of the forms of governance in this study. These forms are brought out by examining solid waste management, a sector which, due to the many actors involved and its high visibility, is a suitable choice for studying governance in service delivery. Drawing on the concepts of space and place and a variety of methods including interviews, this dissertation shows how governance in Abuja is, contrary to common notions, conducted at higher levels with prominent roles given to federal institutions while the municipal government, community and households remain largely invisible.

Onyanta Adama is a member of the research programme on People, Provisioning and Place in Africa at the Department of Human Geography, Stockholm University. This work is her doctoral dissertation.