Importance of Climate to Architectural Designs in Nigeria

Among the basic necessities of life is shelter, after food, housing has always been rightly assumed to be the next essential human need. As a result of this, the construction of buildings in which people live and work has been a major concern since the early times when human being first made huts of stick, mud or rock. It later developed into the use of bricks, stones, timber, organic and inorganic wastes. This paper focused on the need to develop and design an appropriate building suited to their purpose, taking into cognizance the various environmental elements acting on the structures. The research method adopted for this paper was based on an in depth literature review. This paperreiterated the need for architects/designers to design in relation to climate, in order to achieve pleasant, comfortable and conducive structures that ensure physiological and psychological comfort of the occupants. As a result of which, there will be a reduction in substantial amount expended by people to achieve thermal comfort within and around the building, through the use of mechanically controlled measures. This study concluded by giving appropriate design guidelines and recommends that designers/architects should be equipped with the climatic data required for appropriate architectural designs which will help in the evolvement of designs that best suite the various climatic zones of the country identified.