lagos case study

• Economic opportunities - Chances for people to improve their standard of living through employment.
• Formal economy - This refers to the type of employment where people work to receive a regular wage and are assured certain rights e.g. paid holidays, sickness leave. Wages are taxed.
• Informal economy  - This type of employment comprises work done without the official knowledge of the government and therefore without paying taxes. It is common in many LICs.
• Social opportunities -Chances for people to improve their quality of life, for instance access to education and health care.
• Squatter settlement - An area of poor-quality housing, lacking in amenities such as water supply, sewerage and electricity, which often develops spontaneously and illegally in a city in an LIC.
• According to a 2014 report by the National Population Commission of Nigeria Lagos is the 7th fastest growing city in the world, with a population of 21 million. Lagos is a MEGACITY, with a population of over double the required 10 million people!
• Unlike other states dependent on oil revenues Lagos City economy is diversified to manufacturing, transport, construction, service, wholesale, and retail sectors.Lagos is one of the most important cities in Nigeria and indeed in Africa, both economically and culturally. Its Geographic location (see map) is very significant, as it is on the Atlantic coastline of Nigeria allowing for excellent trade routes.  It also has a major airport and is connected to other Nigerian cities via railway and road links.
• The physical Geography of Lagos is dominated by its system of islands, sandbars, and lagoons. The islands are connected by bridges and the land is low-lying. Lagos’s expansion took off during the oil boom in the 1970s and this industry is still key to Lagos and Nigeria’s economic growth.
• There are many industries in Lagos;

  -Lagos Islands southwest shore has commerce, finance, administration, and education.

  - Manufacturing industries in Lagos include automobile and radio assembly, metal works, and the production of paints and soap.

  - textile, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical manufacturing.

  -A fishing industry also exists.

  - A major port area exists at Apapa
• 1. covers only 0.4% of the Nigeria’s land yet is highly important to the country.  Lagos had a GDP of over $136 billion in 20172. Accounts for over 60 percent of industrial and commercial ventures of Nigeria
• 3. A 2015 report by the Economist states that annually Lagos State generates $90 billion dollars in goods and services. 4. If Lagos was a country its economy would be number 7 in Africa making it bigger than that of Kenya, the ivory coast, and Ghana. Lagos is served by Murtala Muhammed International Airport, the major airport serving the entire state. It flies to over 60 destinations including Dubai, London Heathrow and Gatwick, New York and Paris.  The airport has many domestic destinations too linking Lagos well within Nigeria but also globally
• The issue that Lagos has is that despite its incredible wealth by Nigerian  standards, it still has a huge number of people living in shanty towns or slums, together with all of the associated environmental and social problems these areas have.
• Migration - Lagos experienced an influx of over 7 million people from 1990 to 2004 with many of these from other poor regions.  The migration was driven by rural push factors and urban pull factors.
• Natural increase – the population of Lagos is increasing naturally, with significantly more births than deaths per 1000 people every year.  Lagos also has a very young population, so natural increase will continue to add population every year.
• Economic OpportunitiesThere are better employment opportunities with higher pay and of a wider range in Lagos. Jobs are available here that are not available in many other places in Nigeria. Tertiary jobs such as lawyers, computing, finance and business are in demand, allowing people to earn a significantly better wage in the formal sector, paying taxes and being able to send money home. It is also possible to work in the informal sector, for example as a street vendor or recycling waste, that does not pay tax, but still allows people to earn more than previously.
• push factor: Health care - In Nigeria the health care facilities in rural areas are very poor, overcrowded or difficult to access. Often the most vulnerable, so mainly children and the elderly, will die from curable diseases simply because they cannot access the health care. Nigerians can often view cities as places where they can access basic health care services which will increase their life expectancy.  You do need to be able to pay for medicines however, and it is known for the poor to get stuck in hospital even when better as they cannot afford to pay their medical bills.
• pull factor: Education - The ability to provide children with a better education is a massive pull factor to Lagos.  There are more schools and universities in Lagos than other areas, there are over 10 universities in Lagos state alone! Education is seen as a passport out of poverty,  and allows people to be able to get into industries such as finance, film, fashion, business.  Nollywood is the Nigerian film industry, and it is located in Lagos.
• pull factor: Transport - Lagos is investing in the Lagos Rail Mass Transit System.  It was announced in 2008 and phase 1 should open in 2022.  There are already taxis and public buses.
• Electricity - People in Lagos have better access to electricity than in rural areas and is in a much better state than in rural areas who may struggle to find electricity at all in some places. Two new power stations are planned to reduce the city’s shortage of electricity and to light the streets at night. The wealthiest households and businesses rely on generators to provide power when the network fails.
• push factor: Water supply - Water supply is also unreliable, with only the wealthiest homes having a piped water supply. However, others use public taps and boreholes or buy their water from street vendors. In rural areas people could be walking miles to source fresh water to drink.
• Some of the jobs in Lagos are in the formal economy.  These jobs are registered jobs where the workers’ pay taxes to the government and the companies have a legal obligation to protect their workers, offer holidays and pay regular wages.
• Despite the difficulties of the informal industry, they can offer poor people with opportunities.  They can earn money and start to improve their quality of life from that point. Slums such as Makoko has positives:-Many daily chores are done in social spheres because people live close to one another. This helps to generate a sense of community-Many people have a job in the slum and work LOCALLY-The slum offers a first foothold to living in the megacity.

  -Informal shopping areas- to buy anything you might need
• • Inequalities - Differences between poverty and wealth, as well as in peoples' wellbeing and access to things like jobs, housing and education. Inequalities may occur in housing provision, access to services, access to open land, safety and security.
• • Pollution - The presence of chemicals, noise, dirt or other substances which have harmful or poisonous effects on an environment.
• • Sanitation - Measures designed to protect public health, including the provision of clean water and the disposal of sewage and waste.
• • Traffic congestion - Occurs when there is too great a volume of traffic for roads to cope with, so traffic jams form and traffic slows to a crawl.
• • Squatter settlement - An area of poor-quality housing, lacking in amenities such as water supply, sewerage and electricity, which often develops spontaneously and illegally in a city in an LIC.
• SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CHALLENGES

  challenges are large because of its immense size and rapid growth.  Physical Geography also plays a role, as Lagos has been limited in where it can grow because it originally grew next to a lagoon with rivers and lake which limits its growth to the East.
• Squatter settlements or slums

  The major problem in Lagos is the growth of squatter settlements also known as SLUMS. These slums come with many issues for people including the lack of planned access to clean water and sanitation systems, poor health, lack of education, unemployment and the prospect of crime. • 65 percent of the people living in Lagos are urban poor who live in slums• 8.5 percent of the near 21 million people living in Lagos, Nigeria live in poverty
• Makoko is a slum neighbourhood located in Eastern Lagos. In July 2012 dozens of homes were destroyed by Nigerian government officials. The reason for the destruction of this community was to redevelop what is now seen as prime waterfront. Nearly 3,000 people had been rendered homeless by the action.

  Around a third of the community is built on stilts along the lagoon and the rest is on the land. The settlement was originally founded by fishermen but has grown massively alongside Lagos.  Its population is thought to be around 85,000.
• Makoko is also home to the Makoko Floating School. The school has received global recognition and in April 2015, the Lagos State Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development announced that the school may be incorporated into a regeneration plan for the entire Makoko community.

  Makoko has a local governance and is run more efficiently each year, as it becomes more established.

  It is sometimes referred to as the "Venice of Africa".
• Problems in the slums of Makoko:

  1.Lack of sanitation (main issue) – there are communal toilets, but they need to be shared by around 15 households, and sewage, kitchen and other residues end up in the water below their homes.2. Lack of access to clean water – few water pipes in the slum. those that exist only have the supply switched on for 2 hours a day by city authorities.  So, people have to queue for water and have LIMITED SUPPLY.

  3. residents very vulnerable to sea level change and flooding, many of the buildings are actually in the lagoon
• Problems in the slums of Makoko:

  4. Lack of legal rights -very small amount have legal right to the land (around 5%).  5.  POOR HEALTH – life expectancies in the squatter settlements are low because of poor quality water, mosquitoes and dangerous jobs all serve to impact on people’s health. 6. UNEMPLOYMENT and POOR QUALITY WORK - Many people have poor jobs, such as those who fishermen. 
• environmental challenges- Makoko:

  Water pollution. Uncontrolled disposal of raw sewage and sediment in the Lagoon system creating serious health concerns. Deadly waterborne diseases like cholera & diarrhoea affect people as a result. Access to formal clean water is low, with a majority of Lagos residents relying on the informal sector comprised of wells, boreholes, rivers and rainwater - costs them a lot of money.

  Lagos is a city surrounded by water, a wet, tropical climate but a lot of the water is not safe to drink. This is because the demand for water is much higher than the supply.
• Problems of Water Pollution and Supply

  1. Climate change and rising sea levels will increase water contamination and pollution
  2. Some water pipes are laid with sewage so become contaminated
  3. Water from vendors can be contaminated because they also obtain water from the same sources.

  The predicted rise in sea level is a severe threat to the city. Flooding could increase and groundwater could become contaminated by salt. Already this century, there have been a number of serious floods in Lagos, caused by intense tropical rain.
• Makoko- the problem of air pollution:

  Lagos has some very dirty air including dangerous levels volatile organic compounds and small dust particles.  These are both hazardous to human health and can cause things like asthma. The causes of this pollution are industry, ever increasing numbers of cars and construction dust.
• makoko- the problem of waste

  Lagos - largest producer of solid waste in Nigeria. There is no city based system of collection and this waste poses a hazard to human health.  It has been estimated that Lagos produces 13million kg of waste per day using infrastructure developed in the 1970’s when the city had only 3 million residents. Leaving a lot of uncollected waste
• Makoko- the problem of Traffic congestion 

  rising car ownership and wealth have meant that more people own cars in Lagos (5 mill+). These contribute to both noise and air pollution, as well as time as people sit in traffic jams. There is a plan to solve this with Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, with a rapid transit rail system planned and a rapid transit bus system already in place.
• congestion in lagos:

  average commuter in Lagos spends over 3 hours in traffic every day. It makes Lagos one of the most congested cities in the world. 40% of new cars in Nigeria are registered in Lagos
• One of Lagos' transport authority's first achievements was to introduce a bus rapid transit (BRT) system on a north-south route from the suburbs to the CBD on Lagos Island

  provides a separate lane for buses to travel times. 200,000 people use the service every day- a quarter of all commuters in Lagos.The public transport system has to be supplemented by a large fleet of minibus taxis, known as ‘danfos’. They are designed to carry ten to fifteen passengers, but demand is so high that they often carry twenty to thirty.