Profiling Urban Youth Gangs in Ibadan: A Study of the City's Response

The book profiled the various youth gangs in Ibadan, and the reactions of the city s residents to their activities. The concentration of youth gangs was more noticeable in inner city neighbourhoods and ghettoes like the interior sections of Agbeni, Ayeye, Ekotedo and Ogunpa in Ibadan North West. Similar development was witnessed in the squalid sections of Ibadan South East (Beere, Oranyan, Oja ba, Labo, Modina) which eventually contributed to high rates of youth gang s delinquency in those areas. However, lack of opportunities for skilled and unskilled labour contributed to high rates of youth gang s delinquency, especially in neighbourhoods under Ibadan North West. Therefore, a strong relationship exists between lack of economic opportunities for both skilled and unskilled labour and development of youth gangs ( =0.538). A number of strategies were recommended to curtail this trend in Ibadan, some of which are: Provision of adequate economic opportunities for both skilled and unskilled labour and the involvement of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), religious bodies, parents, guardians and community heads in the area of youth empowerment and socio-economic development.