The Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI) has called on the Lagos State Government to halt dredging and sand mining activities around Okun Alfa in the Eti-Osa Local Government Area of the state, warning that the coastal community is at risk of being wiped out by ocean encroachment.
The environmental group also urged the government to construct more wave breakers and provide temporary shelters for residents displaced by the advancing ocean.
The call followed a fact-finding visit by the organisation to the community, where its team interacted with residents and women affected by coastal erosion.
The RDI Executive Director, Philip Jakpor, said the situation was alarming, noting that Okun Alfa had existed for hundreds of years but was now being threatened by what he described as development projects.
Jakpor said, “What we found is heartbreaking because the community has been there for hundreds of years. Now, so-called development projects are threatening to erase them without any suitable alternative.”
He recalled that the administration of former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, constructed some wave breakers to reduce the impact of ocean encroachment on the community.
However, Jakpor said the intervention had provided only temporary relief, as residents told the RDI team that the breakers were too few to withstand the force of the Atlantic Ocean.
The group expressed concern over the impact of development projects, including the Eko Atlantic project and the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, on the community.
RDI Project Officer, Linda Amadi, said women in Okun Alfa were particularly affected by the crisis, as many families had lost their livelihoods and homes to the advancing ocean.
“Our interaction with the women shows that they sleep with one eye open because they fear the waves will roar,” Amadi said.
She urged the government to provide temporary shelters in safer upland areas for residents displaced by ocean incursions.
Amadi also called for empowerment programmes and access to funding and soft loans for women and other vulnerable residents affected by the coastal erosion.
Okun Alfa residents are predominantly fishermen and fish traders, with the community relying heavily on the ocean for their livelihoods.
The RDI said the community had lost more than 1,000 metres of land to ocean incursions over the years, adding that residents had reported a worsening of the situation since 2011.
The residents reportedly linked the worsening erosion to development activities in parts of Eti-Osa and Ibeju-Lekki, as well as the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
The RDI therefore called for an urgent review of activities along the shoreline and stronger measures to protect the community from further erosion.