A systematic review of Urban forest governance and green infrastructure for climate resilience in Lagos, Nigeria

In Lagos, rapid urbanisation, infrastructure expansion and land-use pressure continue to place urban forests, parks, street trees and wider green infrastructure under strain, while fragmented governance limits their contribution to climate resilience, public wellbeing and equitable urban development. Using a systematic review design, this study synthesized peer-reviewed empirical evidence on urban and community forestry (UCF) governance in Lagos, Nigeria, to support the proposed development of a State of Urban Forestry Report. Searches were conducted in Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, Environment Complete, DOAJ, Google Scholar and reference lists for English-language studies published between 2016 and 2025. Twenty studies met the eligibility criteria and were synthesized using a PCC-framed and PRISMA 2020-guided process. The evidence indicates that land administration, development control, regularization, compensation and spatial planning processes may shape the availability of land for UCF and influence how potential benefits and burdens are distributed. Green infrastructure was consistently valued by residents and users, while survey evidence and park-user studies, economic valuation studies and ward/LGA-level street-tree enumeration showed uneven distribution, maintenance gaps, variable service quality, safety concerns and affordability issues. Evidence from specific parks and reserves, especially LCC and LUFASI, shows that staffing, finance, visitor management, safety readiness, reinvestment and monitoring are relevant to asset-level governance, although these findings should not be generalized to all Lagos green assets. The review identifies practical reporting indicators for land governance, green infrastructure equity and park/reserve management. Because AJOL and grey literature were not searched, the findings represent peer-reviewed evidence rather than a full account of Lagos UCF governance, government practice or institutional knowledge.