INAUGURAL LECTURE BY PROF. TAIBAT LAWANSON

Taibat Lawanson is a Professor of Urban Management and Governance at the University of Lagos, Nigeria where she leads the Pro-Poor Development Research Cluster and serves as Co-Director at the Centre for Housing and Sustainable Development. She is an urban development expert and holds a PhD in Urban and Regional Planning from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria

Her research focuses on the interface of social complexities, urban realities and the pursuit of spatial justice in Africa. She is well known for her inter-sectoral work which engages students, policy makers, local communities and civil society actors. She is well published with over seventy articles in both academic and popular platforms.

A recipient of numerous academic awards, she has received research funding from DFID, DAAD, Norweigan Research Council, Heinrich Boell Stiftung, British Academy and the Royal Academy of Engineering, UKRI, Africa Multiple of the University of Beyreuth and Cambridge-Africa ALBORADA Fund among others. She led the technical support team for the drafting of the Lagos Resilience Strategy and has participated in the development of various policy documents leading to the New Urban Agenda, the Nigeiran National Economic Development Plan (2021-2025), Lagos Urban Renewal Guidelines, Niger State Development Policy, Ikorodu Sub-regional Masterplan and the Lagos Island North Action Plan.

Taibat currently serves on the international advisory committee of UNHABITAT’s flagship ‘State of the World’s Cities’. She is also a member of the editorial/advisory committees of major urban studies journals including Urban Studies, Urban Forum and Area Development and Policy. She is a member of the board of directors of the Lagos Studies Association, a pioneer World Social Science Fellow of the International (Social) Science Council, Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners and a proud alumna of the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Centre.