DESIGN SOLUTIONS CREATING BARRIERS TO ACHIEVING UNIVERSAL DESIGN COMPLIANCE OF ACADEMIC BUILDINGS IN UNIVERSITIES IN NIGERIA

The concept of universal design is a design ideology that targets accommodating the accessibility and usability needs of everyone regardless of their ability or disability. It is however observed that in Nigeria, some educational facilities and environments are to some extent inaccessible to the mobility impaired. This is as a result of avoidable design solutions that are inadequate to meet the needs of all potential users. Where educational facilities are inaccessible or difficult to reach for any user group, such situation is capable of depriving those affected, the opportunity of acquiring the education needed to advance in life. To this end, this study investigated design and construction solutions that constitute barriers to achieving universal design compliance of academic buildings in universities in Nigeria, with a view to finding ways of improving accessibility to such buildings and their facilities for users, regardless of their mobility status. The study was a multiple case study research that adopted qualitative research approaches to collect, analyze and present data. The result showed that the areas that constitute barriers to achieving universal design in the academic buildings range from lack of equitable accessibility provisions, inappropriate access provisions, nonflexible usability provisions among others. This indicates that for the academic buildings to be able to adequately meet the accessibility and usability needs of all category of users, there is a need to eliminate the identified designed barriers preventing universal design compliance in them by retrofitting the structures with inclusive design features. To this end, some recommendations which includes, carrying out a phased renovation of the existing academic buildings, as well advising the management of universities in Nigeria to ascertain that subsequent routine and periodic maintenance works in their institutions comply with UD parameters before implementation, were made.