Modelling of government flood-related policy in Sustainable Development Goal 11: evidence from Nigeria using “system theory”

Purpose: Studies showed that many countries, including Nigeria, have not embraced Urban Flood Resilience Technologies (UFRT) to mitigate flooding and related crises. It may threaten Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 11 (ASDG). This may amplify human settlement risks. The reviewed literature revealed that Government Policy Support (GPS) could improve Human Settlements and Sustainable Cities (HSSC). Studies concerning how Nigeria’s Government Policy Support can transform commitments for HSSC via ASDG are scarce. Thus, this study developed modelling of government flood-related policy in SDG 11 by examining the moderating effect of GPS on the relationship between UFRT and ASDG. Design/methodology/approach: SmartPLS (3.3.3) was adopted to analyse the collated data. In total, 460 questionnaires were from respondents across Nigeria’s 6 geo-political zones, and 450 questionnaires were useable and adopted for the analysis. The researchers adopted systems theory to support the study’s proposed model. Findings: The results reveal that Nigeria’s policy support significantly moderates the links between UFRT and ASDG. It shows that the research findings provide more understanding concerning issues influencing transformative commitments for HSSC to improve achieving Goal 11 to mitigate HSSC-related risks. Originality/value: The study (UFRT and GPS) is a mechanism to enhance Goal 11 transformative commitments for HSSC in Nigeria. This could be extended to other countries with similar challenges. Besides the research findings contributing to the scarce literature, it would encourage human settlement policymakers in developing countries to improve achieving Goal 11 and embrace UFRT as the way forward to mitigate risks associated with achieving transformative commitments for HSSC.