Multi-Hazard Urban Risk Governance and the Political Economy of Disaster Risk Reduction in Nigerian Cities

Urban disaster risk in Nigeria arises from multiple intersecting hazards including flooding, fire, building collapse, and environmental pollution, but governance responses to multi-hazard risk remain fragmented and systematically underfunded in ways that reflect underlying political economy dynamics. This doctoral study examines multi-hazard urban risk governance and its political economy determinants in Nigerian cities, developing an original theoretical and empirical contribution to disaster risk governance scholarship. Grounded in political ecology, governance theory, and disaster studies, the research employs a multi-city comparative design in Lagos, Kano, Imo State, and Borno State, each selected for distinct multi-hazard risk profiles and governance contexts. Data collection over five years involved 100 interviews with planning officials, emergency managers, community leaders, international development actors, and political economy analysts, alongside spatial risk assessment exercises, analysis of disaster loss records, and institutional mapping of risk governance actor networks. The comparative analysis employs a configurational approach using qualitative comparative analysis to identify governance conditions associated with effective versus ineffective multi-hazard risk reduction outcomes. Original theoretical contributions include a Nigerian Multi-Hazard Urban Risk Governance Framework and a Political Economy Model of Disaster Risk Reduction that articulates how resource distribution, institutional incentive structures, and political interests shape the allocation of risk governance effort. The study makes empirical contributions through the first systematic multi-hazard risk governance comparative analysis across Nigerian geopolitical zones. Recommendations propose governance architecture reforms, risk financing instruments, and accountability systems grounded in the political economy analysis. Keywords: Multi-hazard risk, Urban governance, Political economy, Disaster risk reduction, Nigeria.