Pollution killed 30,000 Lagosians in 2021

No fewer than 30,000 people die every year from pollution in Lagos.

The Washington-based World Bank disclosed this in a feature story on its blog, which is titled ‘Making Lagos a Pollution Free City: Solving the threat one solution at a time’.

The blog post states pollution is a huge problem in many cities globally, including Lagos, a city densely populated with humans and vehicles.

The bank further said that an estimated 20 million people live on an area of less than 100 square kilometres in Lagos, which leads to a suffocating mix of air pollution, single-use plastic pollution and solid waste in the city’s streets causing respiratory problems, floodings and other illnesses among the locals.

“The causes of the pollution are many, and the pollution has many effects on the environment. It is estimated that at least 30,000 people die every year in Lagos due to pollution,” the ost added.

“Air pollution in 2020 in Lagos was responsible for over 30,000 premature deaths and more than half were infants of less than one year old.”

The bank further warned about the economic costs of exposure to lead aerosol in Ikorodu, which are estimated at an additional $300–$600m or $400–$600 for every resident of that LGA.