Transport Disadvantage in Rural Border Settlements: A Case Study of Imeko-Afon Local Government Area of Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract

The paper examined transport disadvantage in selected rural border settlements of Imeko-Afon Local Government Area of Ogun State. The study specifically examined the socio-economic characteristics of the respondents, pattern of transportation and the indigenous coping strategies of transport disadvantage in the study area. Multi-stage sampling technique was employed to select six settlements in the study area. One hundred and seven (25%) household heads in the selected settlements were systematically sampled for data collection. The study discovered that majority of the respondents (67.3%) were in the age bracket of 31-60 year. It was also revealed that 76.6% of the respondents were farmers. About 55.1% of the respondents move around by trekking while 56.4% and 66.7% trek on a long distance between 1 – 2 km and 3 – 5km daily respectively. Majority of the respondents were of the opinion that the surface condition of the road was bad (87.9%), and also was not reliable during raining season (84.1%). However, to cope with this condition, communal labour was used by the residents to create a new path or enlarge the existing roads for the movement of vehicle, goods and passengers. They also used communal labour to create waterways for easy movement of the vehicle during heavy rainfall in the study area. The study recommends that the government should establish a road maintenance unit to ensure that existing roads are kept in good condition at the local government level. Community efforts should also be encouraged through a self-help approach in the study area.