A Longitudinal Study of Design-Led Urban Regeneration in Nigerian Intermediate Cities

Design-led urban regeneration strategies have demonstrated transformative impacts in European and East Asian intermediate cities, yet their applicability, adaptation requirements, and long-term sustainability in the Nigerian intermediate city context remain theoretically and empirically underdeveloped. This doctoral study conducts a longitudinal investigation of three design-led urban regeneration initiatives in Owerri, Kaduna, and Ilorin over a six-year period, developing an original theoretical framework for design-led urban regeneration applicable to Sub-Saharan African intermediate cities. Drawing on urban design theory, place-based development economics, and design policy scholarship, the study applies a longitudinal multi-case study methodology combining annual spatial quality assessments, economic impact monitoring, social cohesion measurement, and governance process analysis across the three city sites. Documentary analysis of project planning, implementation records, and policy responses supplements primary data collection. Comparative analysis across the three cases identifies convergent and divergent regeneration dynamics attributable to design strategy choices, governance structures, community participation models, and economic context variations. The resulting Intermediate City Design Regeneration Framework comprises six theoretical propositions governing the conditions under which design-led regeneration succeeds or fails in Nigerian urban contexts. Two original constructs, community design embeddedness and political sustainability threshold, are introduced to account for dynamics absent from existing regeneration theory. The framework is subjected to critique by urban planning scholars and practitioners at an international conference. Keywords: urban regeneration, design-led development, intermediate cities, Nigeria, longitudinal study.