Assessing regulatory institutions and building collapse in Lagos state, Nigeria

This study assessed the perceived effectiveness of the selected built-environment agencies in managing urban development in Lagos state, Nigeria. Despite the existence of regulatory institutions such as the Building Control Agency (LASBCA), Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority (LASPPPA), and Materials Testing Laboratory (LSMTL), Lagos state persistently experiences recurrent building collapse, raising concerns about institutional capacity and regulatory performance. This study adopted mixed-method research design. Data were collected from 165 agency personnel for questionnaire administration and structured interviews with 10 professionals. Besides, geographic coordinates of all the agencies and their district offices were collected for spatial mapping. Data were analysed using frequency distribution, percentage, Relative Importance Index (RII), non-parametric Chi-square, while spatial data were analysed using Average Nearest Neighbour Analysis (ANN) and overlapping buffering analysis in ArcGIS. The findings indicated that the supervision and enforcement roles were widely recognised by the respondents but were perceived to be constrained by political interference (RII = 0.87), corruption (RII = 0.86), inadequate manpower and poor inter-agency coordination. Spatial analysis suggested a clustering distribution of the agencies with the peripheral areas relatively underserved. Respondents identified capacity building, adoption of digital monitoring tools, strict penalty enforcement, and greater institutional autonomy as the key reforms. Hence, the study highlighted governance-and-coordination-related challenges within the regulatory framework and emphasised the significance of institutional strengthening for safer and more sustainable urban development in line with Sustainable Development Goals 11 and 16.