Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to unlocking the state’s vast Blue Economy potential, leveraging its expansive coastline to drive economic growth, attract global investment, and bolster climate resilience.
Speaking on Thursday at the 11th Lagos International Climate Change Summit (LICCS) held at the Lagos International Hotel, Victoria Island, Sanwo-Olu said Lagos is building a future where ocean-based innovation transforms commerce, mobility, and environmental sustainability.
The governor noted that Lagos, with its 187-kilometre coastline, must turn its ocean-facing geography into a strategic advantage. He cited the transformation of erosion-threatened land into the thriving Eko Atlantic City, calling it “a living testament to human ingenuity and Lagos’ defiant optimism.”
“For cities like Lagos, climate change is not an abstract concept but a lived reality,” he said.
“We are building coastal resilience to protect lives and livelihoods. We are driving ocean innovation to reimagine commerce and mobility. And we are unlocking green and blue finance to power both.”
Sanwo-Olu also celebrated the Great Wall of Lagos, describing it as one of Africa’s most ambitious coastal defence systems an intervention that enabled land reclamation for the development of Eko Atlantic. What once suffered severe erosion, he said, “now stands as a beacon of renewal.”
On mobility, he highlighted the newly launched ‘Omi Èkó Initiative’, a low-carbon water transport system developed with support from the French Development Agency (AFD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB). He said the initiative is designed to redefine urban transportation and reduce emissions across the state.
Stressing that true resilience goes beyond infrastructure, Sanwo-Olu said the health of Lagos is tied to the health of its natural ecosystems.
“The health of our city is inseparable from the health of its natural ecosystems,” he added.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, said the 2025 summit reflects Lagos’ determination to secure sustainable financing and pioneer solutions that protect oceans, reinforce coastlines, and create long-term prosperity.
Wahab warned that the same ocean resources powering opportunity also present significant threats, including “rising sea levels, extreme flooding, soaring temperatures, and pollution.” He described Lagos’ waterways as increasingly endangered by waste dumping, plastic pollution, and unregulated dredging problems he said require immediate intervention.
“Lagos sees opportunity,” he said. “This summit gives us the chance to redefine our relationship with the ocean not as a resource to be exploited, but as a living system to be nurtured.”
He praised Lagos’ climate governance under Governor Sanwo-Olu, noting that the state was ranked Nigeria’s top-performing sub-national for climate governance for the second straight year in the 2025 Subnational Climate Governance Performance Rating.
