Spatial Distribution of Primary Schools in Ilorin West Local Government Area, Kwara State, Nigeria

Abstract

The distribution of educational facilities in most part of Nigeria has been observed to be politically biased to the extent that a facility is over utilized while others are underutilized in an area. Location of schools should be based on factors such as population, proximity and economy efficiency for sustainable development. The study engages geospatial techniques to show spatial distribution of primary schools. The data used for this project were acquired from primary and secondary sources. The primary data were acquired through handheld Germin 60 Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver to capture the coordinates of primary schools. The secondary data used for this study include a high resolution image, administrative map and school data. Data analysis was carried out using Nearest Neighbor Analysis as the statistical tool in achieving the pattern of distribution of primary schools given as the observed mean distance (Do) between each feature over the expected mean distance (De) for the given features in a random pattern. School location, number of primary schools and the area in square-kilometer for each ward were the parameters used to determine the pattern of distribution of primary schools in the study area. However, the result of spatial pattern of distribution carried out in Ilorin West Local Government shows uneven pattern of distribution of schools in the following percentage. Well served 41.66%, marginally served 25%, under served 16.67% and not served 16.67% such that five (5) wards exhibit random pattern, three (3) Clustered pattern and two (2) Dispersed pattern of distribution.