From Cyriacus Nnaji, Lagos
The Executive Secretary of Lagos Civil Society Participation for Development, (LACSOP), Dede Kadiri, has urged Lagosians to take responsibility for their environment as a way of tackling climate change and flooding in the state.
Mrs Kadiri said this while speaking on the Citizens-Led Accountability and Inclusive Mechanism, CLAIM, project being implemented by LACSOP with support from Bread for the World.
She explained that LACSOP was established to drive development in Lagos, amplify citizens’ voices, and ensure people are part of government policies and community initiatives.
“One of our focused areas is the CLAIM project. There is the single-use plastic ban policy by Lagos State Government. There is also the flooding issue and other climatic concerns across the state and the world. Government must have the right policies and enforce them, but communities also need to take initiatives,” she said.
According to her, the CLAIM project commenced in 2025 with pilot programmes in Apapa and Lagos Island Local Government Areas because of their coastal location, historic importance and high private sector and community activity.
“One of the biggest concerns in Lagos is waste management. Through CLAIM, we are engaging communities to provide solutions to their own problems,” she stated.
Mrs Kadiri disclosed that LACSOP now has a network of over 200 civil society organisations that have been trained and are carrying out activities including community cleaning, waste sorting and advocacy to local governments for waste evacuation.
“Some of the challenges include irregular waste pick-up. Some communities said waste is supposed to be collected daily but it comes weekly, or not at all. Some of them had to do advocacy to get vehicles. If waste stays for a month or two, it goes back into the drains and worsens flooding,” she noted.
She stressed that government alone cannot solve the problem. “Lagos is intimidating in population. The sooner we start taking responsibility for the waste we generate, the earlier we tackle climate change and flooding. We are also moving towards a circular economy and waste-to-wealth through youth, market and private sector involvement,” she added.
Also speaking, Bumi Tejumola, Community Officer for CLAIM Project, Lagos Island, said the project targets youth aged 18-35 and is inclusive of persons living with disabilities. She said the training has changed attitudes, with youths now sorting waste and seeing opportunities to make money from recyclables.
