COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF SOLID WASTE PRACTICES IN RURAL AND URBAN AREAS IN KWARA STATE

Effective solid waste management is crucial for public health and environmental sustainability, yet rural and urban areas of Kwara State continue to struggle with inefficient and inconsistent waste disposal practices. This study therefore comparatively examined waste management practices in rural and urban areas of Kwara State so as to provide data-driven solutions to bridge the rural-urban divide and create a more sustainable waste management system. This study was a descriptive survey of mixed research type. The population for this study comprised all residents in rural and urban areas of Kwara State. Three hundred and eighty-four (384) residents comprising 153 from the rural areas and 231 from the urban areas of Kwara State were sampled for this study using simple sampling procedures. A researcher’s designed questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.69 was used for data collection while the data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics of mean to answer research questions and inferential statistics of independent t-test and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used for testing of hypotheses at 0.05 alpha level while in-depth interviews were conducted and analysed using Nvivo version 4.0 software for the qualitative analysis. The findings from this study revealed significant insights into solid waste management practices in rural and urban areas of Kwara State. Waste collection frequency was lower in rural areas compared to urban areas, with open dumping and burning being the primary disposal methods in rural communities. Despite differences in disposal methods, residents in both rural and urban areas faced similar challenges and barriers to effective waste management. Statistical analyses showed no significant differences in waste management practices based on age and gender among residents in both rural and urban areas. Additionally, while differences existed in waste disposal approaches between rural and urban residents, there were no statistically significant variations in their overall waste management behaviors. It was therefore concluded that waste management practices in Kwara State vary between rural and urban areas, with urban residents benefiting from more frequent waste collection services, while rural dwellers rely heavily on open dumping and burning. Despite these differences in disposal methods, both rural and urban residents face similar challenges and barriers to effective waste management, such as inadequate waste collection infrastructure, limited awareness, and financial constraints. It was thus recommended among others that government and relevant agencies should fund and increase the frequency of waste collection in rural areas to match the efficiency observed in urban centers; there should be public awareness campaigns to improve waste management practices while recycling facilities should be placed in all communities regardless of rural-urban locations.