Lagos State Partnership for Coastal Resilience Initiative

Lagos State Partnership for Coastal Resilience Initiative

Project Lead: WaterAid Nigeria
Supporting Partners: Lagos State Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, Lagos Resilience Office, Lagos Ministry of Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Ministry for Local Government and Rural Development, Community Development Associations
Financial Support:  The UK’s Blue Planet Fund
Location: Nigeria, Lagos State, Ikorodu Local Government Area
Project Timeline/Status: Ongoing (2024-2025)

Project Summary 

The Lagos State Partnership for Coastal Resilience Initiative is a public-private collaboration, convening water stakeholders to address coastal risks, enhance resilience, and promote innovative and sustainable nature-based solutions in Lagos State. By establishing a consultative platform, the initiative aims to enhance community engagement, facilitate the diagnosis of coastal management and economic challenges, and develop strategies to deploy nature-based solutions effectively, thereby promoting economic activity and enhancing the resilience of coastal communities.

Challenge 

The coastal areas of Lagos State comprise over 70 per cent of its population and are extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Sea level rise and the growing frequency and severity of extreme weather events, combined with urbanisation, population growth, and coastal reclamation further increase flood risks and displacement of communities.

Solution

Utilising a collaborative approach, WaterAid Nigeria will deploy advocacy and policy reform tools to champion a climate-resilient coastal region in Lagos State. This will involve conducting research and analysis to assess the technical strengths and weaknesses of Lagos State’s policy and regulatory framework. It will also convene stakeholders through the Lagos Coastal development platform to identify nature-based solutions that enhance the resilience of coastal areas and promote local economic activity. This will include developing a portfolio of bankable coastal resilience projects and finance mechanisms for future investment in the State.

Scaling and Next Steps

The findings and recommendations generated by this project, coupled with community ownership, will bolster systemic change, scale-up efforts, cross-sectoral adaptation, and sustainability.

“WaterAid Nigeria with funding from the UK’s Blue Planet Fund through the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance, is excited about the Lagos State Partnership for Coastal Resilience Initiative. This project contributes directly to the outcomes of our Country Programme strategy on strengthening the resilience of WASH to climate change. It is expected that this project will strengthen coordination and partnerships with stakeholders and institutions in Lagos to design, implement and monitor interventions that will empower coastal communities and strengthen their resilience”.