Urban governance and political influence in contemporary urban settings of midsized cities in Nigeria

• Urban governance in Nigeria faces challenges due to limited local government autonomy and dependence on state governments for funding and decision-making. • Nepotistic urbanism, where politicians channel public funds to their hometowns, has led to fragmented urban development and neglect of smaller towns. • The joint account system between state and local governments has affected local governments' ability to independently fund infrastructure projects. • The study reveals a lack of basic urban infrastructure, such as water supply, public transportation, and affordable housing, in the cities studied. • Reforms are needed to enable local governments to become more autonomous and receive direct funding from the federal government without state interference. • Adopting successful urban governance models, such as that in Sokoto, in other growing cities can promote sustainable urban development. • Low agrarian activities and employment rates were observed in the study areas, with the local economy geared towards a consumption-based economy. The influence of urban governance on cities poses an enormous challenge to the developing regions. Especially in Nigeria, where there is limited empirical research on the impact of the relationship between local, state, and national governments on the implementation of city goals and the rule of law in urban governance. This creates a knowledgeable gap in urban literature in Africa. This study used a survey-driven data approach to seek and develop a scientific understanding of city governance in Nigeria. The analysis used extensive primary data collected in Sokoto, Akure, Calabar, and Umuahia, representing Nigeria's four major regions thereby making the study’s dataset more holistic. Our findings show enormous challenges in funding cities, such as urban politics, a fall in oil prices, a short tenure system, and state-milking city funds. We highlight the effects of a lack of stakeholder theories, such as segregated urban formation, urban unemployment, and low economic turnover. Although states have introduced different skill acquisition programs to empower the urban population, segmented urbanism often creates a wide gap between the rich and the poor, raising doubts about the direction of urban governance in Nigeria.