• ALIVE, other stakeholders confront environmental hazards of the vulnerable in Lagos, target women, children
By Lukman Olabiyi
Non-profit organisation, Aiding Lives Initiative for the Vulnerable (ALIVE), recently conducted gender-disaggregated vulnerability assessments, knowledge building on climate resilience sustenance, and environmental clean up drives across Lagos, coastal and other communities vulnerable to environmental hazards. It also held a stakeholders’ interface meeting on Developing a Gender-Sensitive Climate Action Policy in Lagos, themed, “Amplifying Women’s Voices in Lagos State Climate Action Policy,” reiterating its pro-environment agenda.
The meeting provided a platform for women from flood-prone communities including Makoko, Ago-Egun and Badia, to directly engage policymakers and share their live experiences of climate impact.
Pandora Umechukwu, ALIVE’s Executive Director, said: “We have gathered a diverse group of stakeholders to share knowledge, review findings and begin the collaborative process of developing a Gender-Sensitive Climate Action Policy for Lagos State. A policy that acknowledges the differential impact of climate change on women and children, their experiences, knowledge and leadership in crafting lasting solutions.
“We are here to amplify the voices of these coastal communities who are living through the harshest impacts of ocean surge and environmental degradation, they endure the brunt of the climate crisis without adequate representation in policy dialogue.”
There was the presentation of a Gender Analysis of the Lagos State Climate Action Plan, 2020–2025. It revealed key gaps in the policy’s engagement with women, including absence of gender-disaggregated data, limited inclusion of women in planning and implementation, lack of funding for gender-focused climate adaptation, gender mainstreaming mentioned, but without clear strategies or funding, and unaddressed gender specific impacts on women.
Stakeholders said the plan became inevitable given that women and children in coastal communities bear the greatest burden of climate impacts: “Essentially, women do not have access to clean energy, mobility and flood protection. In most third world cities, Lagos inclusive, transport, housing and energy policies fail to address women’s unique needs.
“Informal women-led businesses are often displaced without support. The current climate action plan does not include specific gender-responsive measures. ALIVE aims to elevate community voices and propose transformative, inclusive policy changes.”
Umechukwu opined: “In most coastal communities, ocean surges and environmental degradation have deeply disrupted life for women and children, especially in Lagos’ coastal communities. The impacts of these include frequent flooding during the rainy season, loss of livelihoods, contaminated drinking water, poor health outcomes, displacement, missed school days and many more.
“The water often infiltrates their homes, leaving them submerged for days, destroying property and compromising hygiene and safety. Women are most affected by flooding and ocean surges, but are least involved in the solutions.
“This meeting is about changing that narrative—by ensuring that women’s voices shape Lagos’ future climate response. Women face gender-specific vulnerabilities due to their dual roles as caregivers and income earners. During floods, they are responsible for ensuring the safety of children, sourcing food, managing water collection, and navigating destroyed sanitation systems, all while often losing their primary means of livelihood.
“Unlike men, they are rarely included in decision-making processes, which limits their access to critical information and resources. The burden of displacement falls heavily on them as they are tasked with finding alternative shelter and maintaining household cohesion amid chaos”
The interface also featured a health talk by a female medical doctor on the health risks of flooding on women and children. She encouraged stronger preventative practices and applauded the resilience of the community women.
The Ministry of Environment and Water Resources acknowledged ALIVE’s clean-up efforts, climate resilience trainings and grassroots policy analysis as “commendable and necessary steps toward inclusive environmental governance.”
There were also calls to action, including develop inclusive climate action plans that incorporate coastal community voices, lived experiences and priorities. Others; ensuring communities are actively engaged and consulted at every stage before, during and after the planning process and design adaptive solutions that reflect the specific challenges coastal communities face during flood seasons.
Included also; promoting equity and effectiveness in climate response strategies; provide dedicated funding for community-led clean-up and climate resilience initiatives, including resources for tools, safe waste disposal and public awareness. Support for localised resilience programmes that empower women to prepare for, respond to and recover from environmental disasters in ways that align with their specific needs and realities
Promote women’s leadership in climate response and planning by ensuring their representation in decision-making roles, invest in training programmes that equip women to serve as local climate leaders, trainers and community mobilizers. Strengthening their capacity to drive change and build resilience within their communities.
Allocate dedicated funding within climate programmes to address the specific needs and priorities of coastal communities, collect and utilise gender-disaggregated data to understand the unique impacts of flooding on women and use this evidence to inform planning and implementation, ensure women’s active participation in monitoring, evaluation and accountability processes to track the effectiveness of climate interventions.
Stakeholders expressed commitment to deeper engagement with communities and recognised the importance of including women in building a climate-resilient state.
The interface attracted representatives of the Lagos State Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, chairmen and directors, Environmental Services of Bariga and Apapa-Iganmu LCDAs. Also in attendance were community development leaders and 100 women from coastal communities.