Abstract :
Identifying the deprived population in any society has not proved an easy task. Definition must be based on the prevailing socio-economic situation of the society. In the developed countries the poor are the minority who suffer from the effects of deprivation and are more exposed than others to adverse effects of the urban environment, such as toxic pollution, noise, inferior housing and violence. The poor in the developing countries, however, are likely to be the majority who suffer from low levels of education, nutritional deficiency, poor employment and disproportionate access to basic infrastructure. The study, which is based on the authorʹs original household primary data, assesses the size and the characteristics of the deprived population. It uses Akure, a case of a medium-sized city on which development was focused in the mid-1970s. Non-parametric statistics and Q-mathematical analysis are applied. Inadequate access to means of production and indicators of housing and living environment constitute the major depreviation parameters. Policy recommendations concentrate on means for productive employment and re-orientation in the provision of basic infrastructure. The recommendations will hopefully be of great value to similar cities in Nigeria and in other developing countries.
