Spatial Justice and the Distribution of Urban Green Infrastructure in Nigerian Cities: An Empirical Study of Abuja

Spatial justice in urban planning requires that public amenities and environmental quality be distributed equitably across income and social groups, yet evidence from global cities consistently shows that green infrastructure is concentrated in higher-income neighbourhoods. This study empirically examines the spatial distribution of urban green infrastructure in Abuja FCT relative to neighbourhood socioeconomic characteristics, testing the spatial justice hypothesis in a planned African capital city. Green infrastructure coverage, encompassing parks, green road reserves, street trees, and open green space, was quantified for sixty-eight residential and mixed-use neighbourhoods using multi-spectral Sentinel-2 satellite imagery analysed through NDVI mapping in QGIS, supplemented by physical ground-truthing of green space boundary conditions. Neighbourhood socioeconomic profiles were derived from FCT area classification data and household survey results from three hundred respondents. Bivariate and multivariate spatial analysis examined the relationship between green infrastructure provision and neighbourhood income level, density, and planning vintage. Results strongly confirm the spatial justice hypothesis: high-income GRA and Phase 1 neighbourhoods show green space ratios of 18.4 square metres per resident against 2.1 square metres per resident in lower-income Phase 4 and 5 settlements. Planning vintage is the strongest predictor of green space provision, reflecting a progressive reduction in open space allocation standards in successive FCT development phases. The study proposes an equity-corrective urban greening strategy for Abuja that prioritises green investment in underserved neighbourhoods through a dedicated FCT Green Infrastructure Equity Fund. Keywords: spatial justice, urban green infrastructure, Abuja, green space equity, urban planning.