A colossal coastal highway is currently under construction along the Atlantic coast, despite facing significant concerns. The 430-mile expressway will connect Nigeria’s bustling capital city, Lagos, with Calabar city near the Cameroonian border, with an estimated cost of about £8.5 billion.
The visionary behind this mega-highway is Nigerian president, Bola Tinubu, who aims to revolutionize the nation’s transportation infrastructure and enhance tourism. During a celebratory event marking the opening of the initial section of the super-highway, Tinubu expressed confidence that “We have a road that will outlast all of us present here.”
However, environmentalists have raised serious alarms regarding the highway’s vulnerability to projected sea level increases in the upcoming years. Nnimmo Bassey, a renowned environmental advocate and former chairman of Friends of the Earth International, has criticized the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway as a symbol of climate change denial.
Highlighting the rapid rise in sea levels along the Nigerian coastline, Bassey cautioned that the project, scheduled for completion by 2028, will face significant risks from escalating sea levels. Nigeria, already highly susceptible to rising sea levels, suffered severe damage in Aiyetoro, where a single ocean surge in 2024 destroyed 50 buildings and claimed 80% of its land area, resulting in a drastic population decline.
Despite these concerns, President Tinubu remains resolute in advancing the project, positioning it as a key component of his re-election campaign. The long-awaited road, stalled in the planning phase for nearly five decades, is seen by Tinubu and his supporters as a crucial leap forward for Nigeria’s economic progress.
Orji Uchenna Orji, an advisor to Nigeria’s public works minister, David Umahi, emphasized the significance of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, labeling it as a pivotal milestone in the nation’s political and economic journey. Envisioned as a road with the most substantial economic corridor in Africa, the highway is anticipated to stimulate economic growth and enhance the transportation ecosystem.
Funding for the $12 billion project will be shared, with the government contributing 30% of the budget, while the contractor, Hitech Construction Company Ltd., will bear the remaining costs. Hitech plans to recoup its investment by collecting tolls on the highway for a 15-year period.
Hitech, known for its Eko Atlantic project, a privately funded $6 billion (£4.5bn) futuristic mega-city near Lagos, is set to implement similar protective measures for the new highway. By incorporating strategies such as sea walls, mangrove belts, and dunes to mitigate erosion and absorb carbon, Hitech aims to safeguard the highway from potential environmental challenges.
Concerns have been raised regarding the environmental impact of the highway, particularly its intrusion into the protected Stubbs Creek Forest in the south-eastern Akwa Ibom state. The forest, home to endangered species, faces further threat from the super-highway, adding to Nigeria’s extensive loss of natural habitats due to oil and gas exploration.
Studies have revealed the alarming rate of coastline erosion in Lagos State, with 89% of the coastline receding by an average of 2.80 meters per year between 1973 and 2019. Despite these findings, an environmental impact assessment conducted by Nigerian firm Natural Eco Capital for the Lagos State section of the highway suggested that a 0.5-meter rise in sea level would not impede the project.
However, projections from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicate that global warming is likely to surpass three degrees by 2100, resulting in a sea level rise exceeding 0.6 meters. This poses a significant challenge to the long-term viability of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
