COMMUNICATION INFRASTRUCTURE RELIABILITY AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE PERFORMANCE FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT IN EKITI STATE

Abstract

Communication infrastructure reliability plays a critical role in determining the efficiency of emergency response systems and the sustainability of urban development, especially in fast-growing cities. This paper seeks to determine how communication systems affect the performance of the emergency response system and sustainability of urban development in Ekiti State, Nigeria, with emphasis on major urban centres including Ado-Ekiti, Ikere-Ekiti, Ijero-Ekiti, Aramoko-Ekiti, Ilawe-Ekiti, Oye-Ekiti, Ido-Ekiti, Efon-Alaaye, Emure-Ekiti, and Ikole-Ekiti, where rising urbanization and increasing emergency incidents have been recorded. A quantitative cross-sectional survey design is adopted in which data were collected from 240 respondents made up of emergency responders, telecommunication staff, health personnel, security agencies, and urban communities across the selected towns. Data analysis involves descriptive analysis, reliability and validity checks, and regression analysis. The measurement tool shows high reliability based on Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.89 for Communication Infrastructure Reliability (CIR), 0.91 for Emergency Response Performance (ERP), and 0.88 for Sustainable Urban Development (SUD). Convergent validity was shown by AVE scores of 0.56–0.68. Regression analysis shows that CIR had significant effect on ERP (β = 0.63, R² = 0.48, p < 0.001) whereas ERP had significant effect on SUD (β = 0.57, R² = 0.42, p < 0.001). Mediation analysis showed that ERP partially mediates the effect of CIR on SUD.