Support for rural communities living along the Lagos Lagoon faced with the impact of climate change – a project by HAI and Eyes of a Lagos Boy
Supported by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Lagos is the biggest city in Africa today and is expected to continue growing, as Nigeria is billed to become the third most populated country in the world by 2050 – according to the United Nations. Lagos is known for its film industry, afrobeat(s) and fashion, fintech and digital start-ups. Lagos is a major port, a center of commerce and trade both for the region and the continent. It is a society that is both modern and traditional, with a strong Christian/Muslim presence and undertones of Ifa, one of the oldest religions on earth.
Every day newcomers arrive in Lagos, eager to change their lives and make their dreams come true. Many leave their villages in other states of Nigeria or West Africa. This leads to constant pressure on water management, a need for new roads and infrastructure, housing and a wide variety of public services that are required to ensure human dignity, security, peace and prosperity.
Lagos is also a city surrounded by water – the Atlantic on the one side and expansive riverine areas, lagoons and rivers inside and around it. They set the stage for a tropical sprawling city, that reflects the challenges posed by rapid urban growth. Many coastal areas are at risk of flooding due to climate change and rising water levels, but also due to land-filling and short-term planning.
All along the Lagos lagoon, hundreds of small villages remain the home of local fishermen and farmers. Just two hours from the bustling city life of Lagos, people are living their lives depending on nature for their survival. Beyond the city of Epe, villagers in over two hundred settlement lack public infrastructure and have very limited access to health, education, power and gainful employment. Water hyacinth is an invasive plant that blocks access to the villages several months a year and affects the livelihoods of the rural dwellers.
The Epe SDG Project will address climate change at local level by transforming waste to wealth, promote better local practices in terms of water management and sanitation, generate employment and impact the lives of children attending public schools in these communities as well as support public health service provision. The project will be professionally documented to raise public awareness and guide future initiatives. This holistic approach is rooted in a vision for sustainable development in a challenging and changing environment.
The project director, Bolaji Alonge has been documenting the impact of water hyacinth in these communities since 2018. ‘Three years ago our exhibition ‘Greener Pastures‘ put a spotllight on the difficulties the inhabitants of coastal villages of Epe experience year in year out due to the menace of water hyacinth, impediment to their livelihoods, healthcare and education of the young ones”, Alonge continues, ”we are glad our clarion call for support was heeded and we are ready to work together with the people of Epe and to achieve a better life in the rainforest/tropical paradise in the east of Lagos. The program is to cover the villages along the Epe axis of the Lagos Lagoon with nodal points at Oriba, Ejinrin, Saaga and Emina”.
The project is to be implemented by Help Africa Initiatives (HAI) in collaboration with other local partners, including MitiMeth.
HAI was set up in 2012 with the aim to help humanity through health, education, sheltering, food provision, orphanage homes and other humanitarian services. HAI including their partners has solid local expertise within public health and experience in terms of campaigning for better livelihoods for the target community.
MitiMeth was established to address the negative environmental and social impacts resulting from waste by creating new sustainable materials derived from invasive aquatic weeds and agricultural residues.
Project activities will be launched in July 2024 and run until February 2025. Dr. Tuyi Mebawondu-Olowu, the assistant project coordinator, said; ”Life in these riverine communities of the Lagos Lagoon has been most challenging. Residents have lost loved ones in dire need of emergency care. Recently, a young pregnant lady died of eclampsia in an attempt to cross the lagoon infested with water hyacinth. Immunization coverage has remained stubbornly low, primary health care centers have been abandoned due to lack of infrastructure, health workers and support. A project to push health literacy and improve health care was not sustained by the government. Water sanitation and hygiene have become compromised. We hope to drive a transformation through specific intervention in environment, health, job creation and education. It is such a worthy cause and we are so excited to be part of the solution.”
HAI and their partners have for the last five years been engaged in advocating for improved services, and also in promoting livelihood activities related to the utilization of water hyacinth as well as public awareness raising. HAI has an extensive network of public and private stakeholders that are essential to the success of this project such as LASWA (Lagos State Waterways Authority), local government in Epe and rural communities, public health authorities and private partners.
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