Social Structures, Local Economic Development and Environmental Quality in Deprived Communities: The case of the Kpirikpiri community in South-East Nigeria

Despite years of International Aid, as recently as late 2010, Africa was seeking a 20% increase in funding for its poor countries. In 2002, Nigeria’s Ebonyi State became part of a Community Urban Development Project and in 2005 joined the Community-based Poverty Reduction Project, both funded by the World Bank. Ebonyi focussed all its aid on three communities in its capital Abakiliki. They were chosen because they exhibited the lowest level of social, political and economic status, and the highest levels of physical decay; following a survey in 2001. One of the three communities, Kpirikpiri, was surveyed again in 2010 as part of this research, and in 2011 a sample of its residents engaged in focus groups to determine how their lives had improved as a result of this funding. It was shocking to discover that the community still suffered from all five housing deprivations used by UN-Habitat to define slum conditions. Yet, the potential of these residents is high. The challenge is how to unlock their potential and establish community organisations that can apply for their own funding; develop a local economy through activities such as home-based enterprises; negotiate with landlords; and start to improve their environmental conditions.