Impact of construction activities on agricultural land use for sustainable food production in Ile-Ife

Abstract

The construction industry is a key player in global economic development and assumes a critical position in multifaceted demand for land resources through urbanisation process such as housing and infrastructure development. This pressure plays significant role in decimating available land resources for agricultural activities and has great implication for sustainable food production. This study examined land use change process in Ile-Ife using Landsat Image at 32m resolution over a period of 2002 to 2023. The features were classified into Baresurface, Built-up, Cultivation, Vegetation, and Waterbody with respective area of coverage of 0.9%, 21.0%, 30.3%, 47.4% and 0.3% at the baseline Year 2002. Findings showed that there was significant percentage increase from 2002 to 2023 of 166.7% for Baresurface (2.4%) and 106.2% for Built-up (43.3%). On the contrary, Cultivation area reduced to 22.2%, with a percentage decimation of 26.7%, Vegetation was reduced to 31.9% with a percentage reduction of 32.7% and Waterbody to 0.2% with a percentage reduction of 33.3%. Notably, majority of the percentage differences occurred between 2002 and 2014, which is largely attributable to increase in minimum wage. By implication, substantial arable land areas for cultivation and vegetation towards food production have been overtaken by built-up area and construction activities without any visible effort at exploring alternatives for agricultural practices towards food production. A concerted effort is required to stem the tide in ensuring sustainable food production.