Lagos, Nigeria:
Walking on water...

Unconventional, chaotic, dangerous, but unmissable... It's impossible not to contemplate Lagos, a veritable megalopolis and the beating heart of Africa's most populous country. Officially, the city has a current population of 22 million, with an estimated 25 million by 2035. However, demographic data is unreliable, and Lagos has long since exceeded the administrative boundaries that have been imposed on it. From south to north, the ‘city’ extends over more than 40 km, absorbing Ikeja. This magnitude brings with it a series of almost insurmountable challenges in terms of housing, education, health, transport, traffic (the notorious go-slow), infrastructure and security. Planning must be carried out in a particularly dense environment. Bola Tinubu, Governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007, before becoming President of Nigeria in February 2023, managed to set in motion a process of modernization during his term of office. The economic capital generates around 30% of the country's GDP and is home to nearly 60% of the country's formal businesses. In 2023, in Lekki, south-east of the city, billionaire Dangote's mega-refinery, with a 650,000-barrel-per-day capacity, was commissioned. It is connected to the new deep-water port. Also in 2023, the Blue Line, a rapid elevated electric metro line, was inaugurated, announcing that it had carried 2 million passengers in its first year. The city, which was born out of the oil industry, is gradually diversifying its economy with the emergence of a dynamic digital sector. This is where ‘unicorns’ valued at over a billion dollars (Flutterwave, Moniepoint, etc.) were born. Districts such as Yaba, nicknamed Yabacon Valley, are attracting investors, start-ups and incubators. Lagos lives at a frenetic pace, 24 hours a day, in a juxtaposition of upmarket neighbourhoods, with their ostentatious luxury, and sprawling slums that spread even under the bridges. Burning the candle at both ends. Built on a vast lagoon network (like Abidjan) with a patchwork of islands, some studies suggest that it risks being partially submerged by 2050...