Lagos needs bigger budget for infrastructure

Lagos Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat says the state requires a larger budget to meet growing infrastructure needs, citing rising costs and rapid population growth as major pressures.

Lagos Deputy Gov. Obafemi Hamzat says the state requires a larger budget to meet its growing infrastructure needs, citing rising costs and rapid population growth as major pressures. Hamzat made this known while featuring at a Fresh FM radio programme on Monday.

He said that although the government was investing heavily in key sectors, available resources remained inadequate to address the scale of demand. He identified transport, housing, healthcare and education as critical areas requiring sustained and expanded funding. “Resources available to the government remain inadequate compared with the scale of infrastructure needs across Lagos,” he said.

The deputy governor disclosed that the cost of rehabilitating roads across the state had risen sharply, recalling that even in 2011, the estimated requirement exceeded N700 billion. He said that major projects such as the proposed fourth mainland bridge had remained in the government’s agenda but required substantial financial commitment for execution.

Hamzat’s comments reflect the fiscal reality facing Lagos. The state’s population is growing rapidly, and the demand for infrastructure is outpacing available resources. The fourth mainland bridge has been on the agenda for years, but the cost is prohibitive. The state government is caught between the need for investment and the limits of its budget.

This echoes the 2018 infrastructure funding debates in Lagos, which also saw officials call for more resources. The mechanism then was different, but the result was the same: a state struggling to keep pace with its growth.

The winners: Lagos residents, who may benefit from improved infrastructure; and the Lagos State Government, which is highlighting its funding challenges. The losers: the Nigerian government, which must support Lagos’s infrastructure needs; and the Nigerian public, who must wait for the benefits.

Bottom Line: Lagos needs a bigger budget for infrastructure. The population is growing. The question is whether the federal government will help or the state will have to manage alone.