ABSTRACT
The study is concerned with evaluating the performance of solid waste management service providers and the perceptions of stakeholders. This is with a view to identifying problems and proposing solutions for improvement of the waste management practices in Zaria Urban Area. Data for the study were obtained by the use of semi-structured questionnaire, personal observation and document review. A total of 379 copies of questionnaires were administered to the respondents and Purposive sampling technique was used to select 7 representatives of the Solid Waste Management Service Providers. On the part of stakeholders, that is Business Operators and Households, the study utilised the cluster, systematic and simple random sampling techniques, to select the neighbourhoods, households and Business Operators for data collection. The data collected were subjected to descriptive and inferential statistical analysis as well as SPSS. The findings from this study reveal that, only KEPA, Public Health Departments of the two local government and the formal private sector are included in the solid waste management set-up. The study established that the problems at the local level in Zaria Urban Area, includes: lack of adequate training and awareness of existing Environmental legislation and regulations on the part of staff of the Environmental Health Department. Likewise, none of the departments has vehicles and equipment of good working condition (table 4.3). The result of responses on coordination among public and private agencies indicates ineffective coordination.The grand means of 1.70, 1.78 and 2.07 for collaboration, consultation and exchange of information respectively have justified this. Majority of the respondents are not satisfied with the performance of service providers in the study area. The grand mean score which is 1.28 and 2.21 for business operators in Zaria city district and households in Samaru district respectively signify this. The study also observed that Solid Waste Management Equipment and Infrastructure utilized by the solid waste management service providers are inadequate, thus leading to ineffective service provision. Based on the findings, the study recommends that other stakeholders should be recognized in the solid waste management set-up, substantial level of operating capital is required by service providers, for them to manage waste effectively, framework for coordination among service providers are to be developed and government is to provide the public agencies with essential equipment and infrastructure for effective solid waste collection.