Korede Abdullah 
LAGOS, Nigeria – The Lagos State Government has stepped up efforts to tackle flooding, regulate sand dredging and improve the management of waterfronts and waterways across the state.
Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Dayo Bush-Alebiosu, disclosed this on Thursday during an interactive session with journalists in Lagos.
He said the government was moving away from simply responding to floods after they occur to identifying their causes and addressing them before they become severe.
Lagos Shifts Focus to Faster Flood Drainage
Bush-Alebiosu said the effectiveness of flood management should not be measured only by whether flooding occurs, but by how quickly accumulated water drains after rainfall.
“Flooding happens everywhere. But what you should look at is how quickly the water drains. Some of these interventions should have been addressed before the problems exploded,” he said.
The commissioner said the state needed accurate data on the quantity of sand in its waters, the locations of dredging activities and where excavated materials were being taken.
According to him, such information would help the government identify areas suitable for dredging and those that should be protected for natural replenishment.
“How can we not know the amount of sand in our waters? How can we not know where the sand is going? What Lagos State has is land and water. How do we utilise them?” he asked.
Bush-Alebiosu said the government was conducting studies and compiling data to provide a scientific basis for managing dredging and waterfront development.
“We used a drone that went as far as five kilometres ahead of us within the airport area, and what we saw was quite disturbing. Today, we have craters and areas that have been dug up,” he said.
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Oluwatobi Adu 
