The event, chaired by retired Supreme Court Justice Amina Adamu Augie, provided a platform for Dr. Hamzat to discuss the fiscal and social challenges facing Lagos.
Lagos, Nigeria – Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, has revealed that Lagos faces a significant daily influx of people, with approximately 6,000 individuals arriving in the city each day, while only around 3,000 leave.
This net increase adds about 3,000 new residents daily, many without any registered addresses, exacerbating the city’s population pressure and resource strain.
Speaking at the 2024 Annual Directors Conference Dinner, themed “Business Meets Government Dinner,” Dr. Hamzat highlighted the city’s growing population, now estimated at 27 million, and contrasted Lagos’s budget of N2.3 trillion (approximately $1.3 billion) with that of New York State, which has a population of 19.5 million and a budget of $237 billion.
The event, chaired by retired Supreme Court Justice Amina Adamu Augie, provided a platform for Dr. Hamzat to discuss the fiscal and social challenges facing Lagos. Representing Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, he outlined how the population boom has intensified pressure on the state’s budget, the largest in Nigeria but significantly smaller than what is allocated in comparable urban centers worldwide.
“Lagos receives over 6,000 new arrivals daily, but only about 3,000 return, adding to a constant population rise,” Hamzat stated. “Our budget is $1.3 billion, which is the largest in the country, but it pales in comparison to New York State’s $237 billion budget with a smaller population.”
Highlighting social challenges, Dr. Hamzat pointed to a decline in family stability. He disclosed that a study found approximately 130,000 women in Lagos have been left by their husbands to raise children alone. “We face a breakdown of family structures,” he said. “Many women are effectively widows, not due to the death of their spouses but because their partners have abandoned family responsibilities.”
Dr. Hamzat also compared the budget allocation for children’s services in New York, which dedicates $5.5 billion solely to protect children from neglect, to Lagos’s limited resources, adding that such protections could make a difference in the state if funding were available.
Addressing government and industry leaders, he urged for individual accountability and improvement in personal and organizational spaces. “We need to clean our own corners,” he emphasized. “Whether in academia or industry, solving these issues starts with addressing the problems in our immediate environment.”
In his opening remarks, Alhaji Tijjani M. Borodo, President and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Chartered Institute of Directors (CIoD) Nigeria, underscored the need for synergy between business and government leaders to tackle issues like policy inconsistency, infrastructure shortfalls, and bureaucratic challenges.
Join our Channel...