Health implication of students housing in Nigeria

ABSTRACT

The students housing has been a major area of concern with increasing students population as a result of increasing interest in higher institution of learning over the years. The rise in population which has led to various problematic conditions of students housing has indeed met with renewed interest in sourcing and researching the best practicable approach towards the enablement of efficient, conducive academic driven environment. In order to ensure that tertiary institutions in Nigeria justify this assertion, there is a need to deal with the facilities gap in students housing. This research examined the effects of students housing quality on students health in the Federal University of Technology Akure. Data used in this study were sourced from both primary and secondary sources. A multistage sampling technique was employed. First, cluster sampling was employed on the number of rooms to be sampled from each block. Population was the basis of the distribution of the block into clusters, a random choice of rooms was then made. A total number of 75 well- structured questionnaires we’re administered, using descriptive and inferential statistics as analytical tools, the findings revealed that there are diseases amongst students residing in the hostels caused and spread by the poor state and condition f available students housing facilities, the inadequacy of the existing facilities which created high occupancy ratio has invariably led to over utilization of the available facilities, putting the facilities in deplorable conditions. Based on these findings, this study recommended that the school authority renovates and rehabilitates the declined facilities as well as provide more facilities to complement the population of the students on campus, also, the University should put in place a strict policy that would check the number of students per room, to reduce overpopulation and over stretching of facilities.