An Evaluation of the Cost of Youth Gang Violence on traders and residents of selected Local Governments in Lagos, Nigeria

Ogunmefun Muyideen Folorunsho ORCID iD, Ogunnowo Ruth Oore-ofe ORCID iD& Awojobi Bilikis Temitope ORCID iD

Issue: Vol.6 No.15 Article 21 pp. 4507 – 4519
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561521| Published online 30th December, 2025
© 2025 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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The prevalent nature of youth violence in Nigeria undermines the growth of residents and traders in Lagos state, thereby posing a threat to human and economic development. This study inquired into the evaluation of the socioeconomic cost of youth gang violence on traders and residents of selected local governments in Lagos state, Nigeria. The Broken Windows and Strain Theories were adopted for the study. The extant literature was reviewed to justify the research inquiry. Qualitative method and exploratory research design were used to collect data for the study. The study was conducted among the community residents and traders in three market zones (Awolowo/Ojuwoye, Aswani market and Egbede modern market) located at three different local government areas (Alimosho, Mushin and Oshodi/Isolo). The study adopted snowballing techniques for the identification of the residents and traders, while a purposive technique was adopted to interview (15) traders and an accidental sampling technique for the collection of data from (15) community residents. The findings revealed that the prevalence of youth gang violent activities results in civil unrest, regressive economic conditions, loss of lives and properties, vandalism, trauma, among other vices. It is recommended that the use of closed-circuit television be considered, vehicular and police patrols should be stationed where needed, and the government should fully separate the protection and operation of the market from the National Union of Road and Transport or the Road Employees Association of Lagos State, Nigeria. The outcome of the study is expected to enlighten community residents and traders on the proactive process of reporting criminality and delinquent activities to the authorities.

Keywords: Costs-of-youth-violence, Evaluation, Socioeconomic, Traders, Residents

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Ogunmefun Folorunsho Muyideen is a sessioned scholar and a Fellow of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), a Fellow of the Forensic Investigation Society of Nigeria, and a Fellow of the National Association of Sociology and Anthropology of Nigeria. He is a lecturer at the Department of Criminology and Security Studies at Chrisland University, Ogun State, Nigeria. He has extant publications in local and international journals.

Ruth Oore-ofe Ogunnowo holds a PhD in International Relations from North-West University, South Africa. She has an appreciable knowledge of French with the DELF B1 Certification. Ruth is a member of the Canadian Association of African Studies (CAAS) and the African Association for Japanese Studies (AAJS). She has made significant contributions to knowledge through well-researched works published in accredited books and journals. Her areas of research interest span human security, comparative politics, modern history, international relations and the politics and governance of natural resources. She currently lectures in the Department of International Relations and Diplomacy, Chrisland University, Abeokuta, Nigeria.

Folorunsho, Ogunmefun Muyideen, Ogunnowo Ruth Oore-ofe, and Awojobi Bilikis Temitope. “An Evaluation of the Cost of Youth Gang Violence on traders and residents of selected Local Governments in Lagos, Nigeria,” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 6, no. 15 (2025): 4507 – 4519, https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561521

© 2025 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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