Lagos population ‘rises by 85 people per hour’
The World Economic Forum (WEF) says Lagos is the fastest-growing city in the world, with a growth of 85 people per hour.
The population growth of Lagos is faster than that of London and New York put together, with the two cities growing at a rate of 9 and 10 people per hour.
Earlier in 2015, London reached a record 8.6 million inhabitants, while Lagos grossed over 20 million inhabitants in the same year.
Delhi, India and Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, trail directly behind Nigeria’s commercial capital, with a population growth of 79 and 74 people per hour, respectively.
Quoting a development report by the UK Guardian, WEF says in its review of 2015: “By 2025, the Chinese city of Shenzhen will be home to more than 12 million people. In 1950, it was a fishing village with only 3,148 citizens.
“In 1960, the only city in sub-Saharan Africa with a population of over 1 million people was Johannesburg. Ten years later, there were four. By 2010, that number had sky-rocketed to 33 cities.
“Worldwide, urban areas are expanding. It is estimated that by 2050, 70% of the world’s population will be living in urban areas.”
According to the report, other fast-growing cities in Africa are Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Southern African hub, Johannesburg.
Kinshasa is set to grow from 200,000 to more than 16 million, growing over the next decade at the vertiginous rate of 4 percent a year (about 40 people an hour).
In 2010, the UN estimated that at its growth rate, Lagos state will be third-largest mega city the world by 2015, after Tokyo in Japan and Bombay in India.
The population of Lagos was only slightly below five million in 1980.
The problem is the small land area and lack of efficient infrastructure and transport system. Lagos should be an ideal model city, but it’s still lacking considering what she generates internally. I hope we have more visionary leaders in Nigeria.