Sustainable Public Procurement as a Tool to Implement the Right of Access to the Physical Environment for Persons with Disabilities in Nigeria

Abstract

This thesis investigates the extent to which Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) can be leveraged as a legal and governance tool to implement the right of access to the physical environment for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in Nigeria, particularly in public schools, hospitals, and workplaces. Grounded in Nigeria’s binding obligations under Article 9 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), ratified in 2010, the study examines how national procurement law, institutional frameworks, and administrative practices may be reformed to meet the demands of inclusive and rights-based sustainable development.

Employing a doctrinal legal methodology, the research combines legal interpretation, policy analysis, and comparative constitutional insights to interrogate the normative and operational alignment between Nigeria’s domestic legal framework, such as the Public Procurement Act (2007), the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act (2018), and the 1999 Constitution and the standards articulated in the CRPD. Central to the thesis is the development of an original Implementation Framework for Equal Access to the Physical Environment (IFEAPE), comprising five core measures and eight compliance indicators, designed to evaluate state performance in ensuring accessibility to the physical environment.

The findings reveal substantial legal, institutional, and socio-cultural barriers that hinder inclusive procurement in Nigeria. These include the absence of enforceable accessibility standards in procurement law, weak inter-agency coordination, lack of technical capacity among procuring entities, and insufficient constitutional recognition of disability rights. Through these findings, the study demonstrates how legal form and administrative function jointly contribute to the exclusion of PWDs from equal participation in public life.

The thesis makes an original contribution to legal scholarship by reconceptualising public procurement as a platform for rights realisation, not merely technical compliance or fiscal efficiency. It proposes a strategic reform agenda, including constitutional amendment, statutory revision, institutional restructuring, and participatory engagement with disabled persons’ organisations to embed accessibility, accountability, and equality into Nigeria’s procurement architecture.
In conclusion, the thesis argues that aligning procurement governance with SPP principles and CRPD mandates holds transformative potential to promote dignity, inclusion, and substantive equality, and can serve as a model for advancing disability rights through legal innovation in other developing jurisdictions.

Date of Award	29 Jun 2026
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Bangor University
Sponsors	NIGER DELTA DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
Supervisor	Ama Eyo-Otung (Supervisor) & Stephen Clear (Supervisor)