Environmental engineers and sanitation experts have called for investment in climate-resilient, technology-driven infrastructure and comprehensive sanitation reforms to safeguard Lagos against flooding, pollution and impacts of climate change.
They spoke yesterday at a professional lecture: “The Environment Sector in Lagos: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow”, to mark the 70th birthday of veteran engineer, Babatunde Adeyemi Oshodi, at Nigerian Society of Engineers Secretariat, Agege, Lagos.
Delivering the keynote address, Adedapo Ajadi, Director Drainage Construction and Dredging, Office of Draining Services, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources Lagos state, warned that Lagos, a fastest-growing megacity, faces mounting pressure from urbanisation, coastal vulnerability, rising sea levels and increasingly intense rainfall.
Ajadi said environmental management in Lagos was characterised by poor drainage networks, weak enforcement of environmental laws, manual waste handling and low public awareness, which worsened flooding and environmental degradation.
But he noted that the state had recorded improvements through stronger Lagos Waste Management Authority, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency and Office of Drainage Services, with expanded drainage infrastructure, routine desilting, removal of illegal structures and data-driven planning using hydrological studies and GIS mapping.
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“Climate change has altered the rules,” Ajadi said, stressing that future environmental planning must prioritise climate-smart infrastructure, real-time flood monitoring systems, digital asset management and stronger public-private partnerships.
He added that environmental considerations must be integrated into road, housing and transport development.
The engineer warned that continued neglect of environmental systems would undermine food security and economic growth, citing desertification and environmental degradation in the country.
He said Sahara Desert had expanded in the past century, threatening livelihoods.
Ajadi also raised concerns about declining professional standards, urging engineers to return to ethical practice, rigorous training and mentorship.
According to him, “a society that accepts average as good enough will inevitably lose value.”
The lecture paid tribute to Engr. Oshodi, describing him as a mentor, leader and institution builder whose career helped shape Lagos’ environmental and public works systems.
Earlier, Director of LASEPA, Engr. Sesan Odukoya, said the professional lecture was organised to celebrate Oshodi’s legacy of mentorship and service.
He described the celebrant as a leader who nurtured generations of engineers and strengthened environmental governance in the state.
“Many of us sitting here today were shaped by his leadership. He created systems, empowered people and laid foundations that we are still building on,” Odukoya said.
Speaking on the sidelines of the event, the celebrant, Engr. Oshodi, expressed gratitude for reaching the milestone age of 70, attributing his life and career to divine grace.
“When you are young, you think 70 is very far. Today, I am here only by the grace of God. Many classmates and friends are no longer alive,” he said.
The event lecture titled “Future-Ready Professionals for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 and Beyond” was delivered by the General Manager of the Lagos State Public Works Corporation, Engr. Tokunbo Ajanaku.
Ajanaku traced Nigeria’s development journey from the Millennium Development Goals to the SDGs, stressing that the ultimate measure of development is the well-being and quality of life of the people.
He explained that the SDGs are built on three pillars, social, economic and environmental, and warned that environmental degradation now threatens progress in the other two pillars.
“Our forests are disappearing, our water bodies are polluted and food security is under threat. If we fail to fix the environment, economic growth and social well-being will collapse,” he said.
He criticised the declining quality of professional training, warning against what he described as a “microwave generation” of professionals lacking practical competence and ethical grounding.
“Future-ready professionals must be properly trained, not just academically, but in character, capacity and competence,” Ajanaku said.
Sanitation challenges also took centre stage at a panel session themed “Faecal Sludge Management in Lagos State: Challenges, Innovations and Prospects.”
Panelists, including Odukoya; Director, Urban Policy and Research Department, Office of Urban Development, Mr. Ayodeji Awolesi; Managing Partner, TUSNAH Consulting, Mr. Olufemi Ogunleye; and General Manager, Lagos State Wastewater Management Office (LSWMO), Engr. Femi Afolayan, raised concerns over persistent gaps in faecal sludge management (FSM).
