Lagos “slums”, honestly: Makoko, Ajegunle and the myths

Search for “Lagos slums” and you will find dramatic drone shots of Makoko’s stilt houses on the lagoon and articles that lead with Ajegunle’s poverty and crime. Some of that is true. A lot of it leaves out the most important fact: these are neighbourhoods where hundreds of thousands of people live ordinary lives, work hard, raise children and have strong opinions about football.

This article tries to be honest in both directions: clear about the real problems, and clear about the myths. It is not a guide to visiting. Nobody’s home is a tourist attraction.

What “slum” actually means

The word gets used loosely, often as an insult. The United Nations uses it in a narrower, measurable way: a household counts as a slum household if it lacks one or more of five things, namely improved water, improved sanitation, enough living space, a durable house, and secure tenure (the legal right to stay). By that definition, “slum” describes conditions people live in, not the people themselves. Many residents of the places below object to the word, and you will see why.

Makoko

Makoko is a waterfront community on the Lagos Mainland, by the Third Mainland Bridge. About a third of it is built on stilts over the Lagos Lagoon; the rest is on land. It was settled in the eighteenth or nineteenth century, and its waterfront is largely home to Egun people whose families came from Badagry and the Republic of Benin, many of them fishing families. It is made up of several villages, some on water and some on land.

Nobody knows how many people live there. The figure often treated as official is about 85,840, but estimates run up to a million. That gap matters, because a community that is not counted is easy to ignore when budgets and plans are made.

Makoko has also been the site of ideas the world noticed. In 2013 the Nigerian architect Kunlé Adeyemi and his practice NLÉ built the Makoko Floating School there. It was abandoned over safety concerns and collapsed in heavy rain in June 2016, with no casualties; a later version of the design won a Silver Lion at the Venice Architecture Biennale that year.

Ajegunle

Ajegunle, called AJ City, is in Ajeromi-Ifelodun local government, beside the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports. The 2006 census counted 687,316 people in the local government area, and later estimates are far higher. It grew alongside the ports, drawing people from all over Nigeria, so its council calls it “Mini-Nigeria”, with Pidgin as the shared language. It is famous for music and for footballers, including Samson Siasia, Taribo West, Emmanuel Amuneke and Odion Ighalo. It has also changed: since around 2008, private money has brought new buildings, hotels and event centres, which some residents welcome and others worry will push them out. Read more in our Ajegunle guide and our guide to Ajeromi-Ifelodun.

Six myths

Myth 1: “There is no economy there.”

There is a great deal of economy. Makoko’s waterfront lives largely by fishing. Ajegunle’s council lists seven major markets, and the area sits next to the busiest ports in Nigeria. Much of the work is informal, with all the insecurity that brings, but it is work.

Myth 2: “There is no community or order.”

Every community in Ajeromi-Ifelodun has a traditional head, the Ba’ale, alongside titled chiefs, and the council names the Egungun and Igunu Ko festivals among its cultural highlights. Order looks different from a planned suburb. It is not absent.

Myth 3: “We know how many people live there.”

We do not. Makoko’s estimates run from about 85,000 to a million. Ajeromi-Ifelodun’s run from 687,316 (2006 census) to 2.2 million (the council’s own estimate). Lagos as a whole is put anywhere from 17 to 21 million. Treat any confident number with suspicion.

Myth 4: “Clearing it fixes it.”

Lagos has a long history of demolishing poor waterfront communities, and the record is painful. In July 1990, under the military administrator Raji Rasaki, the state cleared Maroko; about 300,000 people lost their homes, according to researchers who studied the eviction. In July 2012, part of Makoko was demolished within 72 hours of notice and nearly 3,000 people lost their homes. In January 2026, demolitions in Makoko began again; the state cited safety and buildings under high-voltage power lines, while a coalition of 23 rights and environmental groups condemned them and accused the government of ignoring court orders. People who lose their homes do not disappear. They move somewhere else, usually with less than before.

Myth 5: “It is dangerous for everyone, all the time.”

Crime exists, as it does in poor areas everywhere, and it is right to take care. But the people most exposed to what is wrong in these places are the residents themselves: bad roads, poor infrastructure, and the constant risk of losing their homes. Reducing a neighbourhood to “danger” hides the dangers its people actually face.

Myth 6: “Nothing good comes from there.”

Ajegunle alone has produced professional footballers who played at the top level, and well-known musicians. The digital-skills charity Paradigm Initiative began its youth programme there as Ajegunle.org. Talent is everywhere; opportunity is not.

The real problems

None of this means everything is fine. The honest list, from the sources below: some of the highest population densities in Lagos; homes on low, reclaimed marshland or over the lagoon; roads that become impassable after rain; poor public infrastructure; insecure tenure, which leaves families exposed to eviction; and population counts so uncertain that planning starts from a guess. People who live there say all of this first, and loudly.

How to talk about these places

• Name the place, not the stereotype: “Makoko”, “Ajegunle”, not “the slum”.
• Say what is actually wrong: “no piped water”, “flooding”, “threat of eviction”.
• Do not photograph people or homes without permission, and never treat a neighbourhood as a day out.
• Listen to residents, who are the experts on their own lives.

Why AJ Cities shows Ajegunle the way it does

AJ Cities is a free browser game named after Ajegunle. It is set in a fictional estate on the edge of Ajegunle, where Navy Town meets Kirikiri, and every character in it is invented. We made a choice to show the area with warmth and humour: the crowding, the generators, the hustle and the jokes, not just the hardship. The page about the real Ajegunle explains what inspired it, and the stories are about people, not problems.

What does “slum” mean?

The UN counts a household as a slum household if it lacks one or more of: improved water, improved sanitation, enough living space, a durable house, and secure tenure. It describes conditions, not people.

How many people live in Makoko?

Nobody knows. The figure often treated as official is about 85,840, while other estimates run up to a million.

Is Ajegunle a slum?

Parts of it face slum conditions such as crowding, flooding and poor infrastructure. It is also a large, proud, mixed neighbourhood with markets, festivals and a famous record in music and football.

Can you visit Makoko or Ajegunle as a tourist?

We do not recommend treating anyone’s neighbourhood as a tourist attraction. If you go, go with someone who lives there, ask before taking photos and respect people’s privacy.