A Gis-Based Analysis of Police Stations Distributions in Kano Metropolis

Abstract

The paper examines the spatial distribution of police station in Kano Metropolis. Global Positioning System (GPS) was used to measure the coordinates (latitude and longitude) of the stations in the area, while the data pertaining to the number of police personnel in each station were sourced from interview and documented data sourced. The data were anlysed using simple and inferential statistics. Also ArcGIS 9.3(Version) Software was used to draw the map of the distribution. A nearest neighborhood analysis has shown that the distribution of stations is random in the area. One and two kilometer buffer zones were generated and the result shows that the old city of Kano and the eastern part of the metropolis were fully served while the west and southern part were underserved. The ratio of police officer to population in the area is 1: 539 in the area which is far below the United Nation recommended figure of 450. It was also discovered that there is neither significant relationships between the numbers of the station nor between the number personnel in the station and population in the area. The research recommends the needs for population consideration in citing station in the areas as one of the means for achieving better security situations.