Assessing Social Sustainability in Residential Housing Neighbourhoods of Gwarinpa and Apo, Abuja Nigeria

Social sustainability has become an important dimension of sustainable housing development because it influences residents’ quality of life, social inclusion, health, and well-being. This study assessed the social sustainability performance of residential housing in Gwarinpa and Apo, Abuja, Nigeria, using indicators of affordability, accessibility, proximity to essential services, indoor environmental quality, community well-being, and resident satisfaction. Data were collected through household surveys and analysed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. The results revealed an overall social sustainability score of 1.43, indicating a moderate level of performance. Gwarinpa recorded a higher composite score (1.51) than Apo (1.34). Affordability was relatively low, with only 12.0% of housing units affordable to low- and mixed-income households, while accessibility emerged as the weakest sustainability dimension (mean = 0.53). Service proximity recorded comparatively better performance (mean = 1.78), whereas green-space provision remained limited (mean = 1.00). Resident satisfaction was moderate (mean = 1.58) and was significantly associated with housing typology, location, maintenance status, thermal comfort, energy-efficiency features, water-conservation features, and household income (p < 0.05). The study concludes that improving affordability, accessibility, environmental quality, and community infrastructure is essential for enhancing social sustainability and promoting inclusive residential development in Abuja.

social sustainability, residential housing, resident satisfaction, affordability, accessibility, Abuja.

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