Abstract:
Gentrification, a process of displacement of low-income households and businesses by highincome class, is a disconcerting feature of development in Lagos State. Previous studies on
gentrification focused on physical transformations of built environment with little attention
paid to its sociological processes. This study, therefore, adopted a sociological approach to
investigate the social history, processes, drivers, patterns, costs, adaptive strategies and social
relations of gentrification in Lagos State, Nigeria.
Gentrification Interpretive Theory provided the framework, while the descriptive research
design was adopted. Agege, Alimosho, Oshodi, Eti-Osa, Lagos Mainland and Lagos Island
Local Government Areas (LGAs) were purposively selected due to their pervasiveness in
gentrification. Primary data were collected using quantitative and qualitative
instrumentations, while secondary data were obtained from official documents. Using
systematic sampling technique, a total of 894 copies of questionnaire were administered to
residents of gentrifying areas based on Cochran’s (1977) formula; 24 In-depth Interviews
(four per LGA) were conducted among longtime and new residents, voluntarily displaced
landlords and tenants; 24 Key Informant Interviews (four per LGA) were conducted with
developers (one per LGA), estate agents (one per LGA), one official of Lagos State Urban
Renewal Authority, and another from Lagos State Building Control Agency; six Focus Group
Discussions (one per LGA) were held among religious leaders, and six Life Histories (one per
LGA) were done among community leaders. The processes and patterns of gentrification were
observed through non-participant observation. Quantitative data were analysed using
descriptive statistics, Chi-Square and Multiple linear regressions at p≤0.05, while qualitative
data were content-analysed.
The respondents’ age was 42.41±15.64 years; of whom 62.0% were males and 50.1% earned
>N100,000 monthly. Gentrification was traced to the colonial era. It manifested in
displacements of low income households and businesses by governments and wealthy
individuals through private and government driven processes. The private processes entailed
persuasion of poor landlords by gentrifiers through agents, and this was jointly predicted by
education, age and income (Adj.R2 = 0.19, F (3, 891) = 73.29). The government-driven processes
were characterised by disregard for court injunctions on the legality of occupancy of
gentrifying areas. Influx and expansion of businesses (23.6%) and profit-seeking behaviour
(34.0%) were generic and specific drivers of gentrification respectively, and these were
significantly related to respondents’ income (χ2 =202.42), education (χ2 =237.78) and
occupation (χ2 =234.32). While political and criminal gentrifications were new patterns of
gentrification in Lagos, homelessness (10.3%) and high cost of living (27.2%) were the social
and economic costs. Reliance on family and friends’ networks for support (41.2%) and use of
refurbished containers (24.8%) were adaptive strategies adopted by displaced families and
businesses. Remaining indigent original occupants of the gentrifying areas felt threatened by
the arrival of gentry, causing deep sense of alienation.
Gentrification processes adversely influenced social relations between low-income residents
who have stayed long and the gentry, with grave implications for sustainable peace and
development of urban Lagos. Inclusive social and economic policies that would alleviate
poverty and meet housing needs in low-income areas of Lagos State should be formulated.