Spatial Dynamics of Urban Economic Transformation and Planning Policy in Nigerian Resource Cities

Resource-dependent cities in Nigeria face distinctive planning challenges arising from the spatial concentration of resource extraction activities, volatile economic cycles, and the governance challenges of managing resource revenues for sustainable urban development. This study examines the spatial dynamics of urban economic transformation and planning policy responses in three Nigerian resource cities: Port Harcourt (oil), Jos (tin and columbite), and Abeokuta (quarrying), representing different resource types and transformation stages. Drawing on evolutionary economic geography, resource curse theory, and urban political economy, the research develops a theoretical framework for resource city planning that integrates economic transition dynamics with spatial governance analysis. Primary data collection over five years involved 400 enterprise surveys, 90 interviews with planners and economic development officials, spatial analysis of land use change related to resource activities, and econometric analysis of resource revenue and urban development investment data. Comparative analysis using the most-similar case strategy identifies how planning governance has either mediated or amplified the spatial impacts of resource dependence and depletion. Original theoretical contributions include a Resource City Urban Transformation Framework that articulates planning policy pathways for different stages of resource city economic evolution. The empirical analysis generates new evidence on the long-run spatial consequences of resource dependence in Nigerian urban economies. Recommendations develop a resource city planning policy toolkit addressing economic diversification, brownfield redevelopment of depleted resource sites, and fiscal frameworks for investing resource revenues in durable urban development. Keywords: Resource cities, Economic transformation, Urban planning, Nigeria, Spatial dynamics.