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From Jude Dangwam, Jos
Professor Samuel Danjuma Wapwera of the University of Jos has attributed the city’s rising unsafe developments and environmental degradation to the prolonged non-implementation of the Greater Jos Urban Master Plan.
Speaking at the university’s 115th inaugural lecture, Prof. Wapwera lamented that the master plan, which was designed to guide orderly development and ensure a healthy urban environment, had largely remained unfulfilled. “The Greater Jos Urban Master Plan had a vision that was meant to guide development and guarantee a healthy environment for the people, but that vision has not been fulfilled. What we see today are developments taking place without a guiding framework, and this affects all of us directly,” he said.
He highlighted institutional weaknesses, poor coordination, political interference, insufficient funding, and a shortage of qualified manpower as key factors undermining the plan’s execution. He urged government authorities to review, update, and formally legislate the plan, emphasising that urban planning must be treated as a governance and public safety priority.
The University of Jos Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Tanko Ishaya, reinforced these concerns, citing encroachments on university land as a symptom of broader urban planning failures in the city.
The lecture underscored the urgent need for coordinated planning and enforcement to curb unsafe developments, protect the environment, and safeguard the welfare of Jos residents.
