Lagos to arrest, prosecute buyers patronising illegal roadside traders

The Lagos State Government has announced plans to begin arresting and prosecuting residents who patronise illegal roadside traders as part of a renewed crackdown on street trading, indiscriminate waste disposal and obstruction of public infrastructure.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), Dr Muyiwa Gbadegesin, disclosed this on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at the Authority’s headquarters.

Gbadegesin said the enforcement would commence next week and would be carried out in accordance with Section 151, Subsection 2 of the Lagos State Environmental Management and Protection Law 2017.

According to him, the enforcement strategy will no longer target only traders operating in prohibited locations but will also extend to customers who purchase goods from them.

He explained that patronage encourages traders to occupy roadsides, medians, walkways, setbacks and other unauthorised public spaces.

“The law does not only prohibit illegal street trading. It also makes it an offence to buy goods exposed or offered for sale in prohibited places,” Gbadegesin said.

He warned that anyone caught buying from traders operating in unauthorised locations would be arrested alongside the traders and prosecuted.

A person convicted of the offence, he said, could face a fine of N90,000, six months’ imprisonment, or both.

The LAWMA chief executive said illegal roadside markets also contribute significantly to environmental problems, as traders and customers often dispose of waste in drains, roads and other public spaces.

Such practices, he noted, obstruct drainage channels, worsen flooding and traffic congestion, and create public health and safety risks.

Gbadegesin said the state was simultaneously improving waste collection services in inner streets and communities around areas previously cleared of illegal dumping.

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He added that identified service gaps would be addressed, while deliberate dumping, redumping and patronage of illegal markets would attract enforcement.

The LAWMA boss urged residents and businesses to patronise recognised markets and dispose of waste through approved channels, stressing that personal convenience should not compromise public health and environmental sanitation.

The latest measure builds on Lagos’ broader campaign against illegal street trading. In June 2025, the state cleared illegal traders from the median of Ojo-Alaba Road in a joint operation involving the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps (LAGESC) and LAWMA, with three persons arrested during the exercise.

Lagos State Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, has also repeatedly warned against trading on walkways and other public infrastructure, citing the damage to drainage systems and obstruction of public spaces.

With the latest policy, the state is shifting its enforcement strategy from targeting only illegal traders to also holding their customers accountable, in an effort to break the cycle of roadside trading and indiscriminate waste disposal across Lagos.