Makoko, Lagos, Nigeria
Makoko : An aquatic shanty town in the center of Lagos. This community was originally created in the middle of Lagos in the 19th century by the Tofinu people of Ganvié, the Venice of Africa, in what is today the Benin Republic. Makoko is an informal settlement across from the 3rd Mainland Bridge located in central Lagos. This community is often a considered something of a "no man's land" as far as law enforcement is concerned... French is very useful here when speaking to the elders ! The authorities of Lagos have destroyed the entire village many times in attempts to "clean things up" for other urban projects, but like a phoenix, Makoko consistently reappears. The world's media often refer to Makoko as a "slum" or a "shanty town" but it is worth noting that the residents of Makoko are very unhappy with those terms, and want it to stop. The reason why we decided to use the terms here, when we created this webpage is simply because we thought that people who do not know the proper name for Makoko but are searching for information about Makoko may search for information using keywords such as "water slum in Nigeria"... so we thought that if we did not include the word "slum" or "shanty town", those people will not be able to find this page. Thank you for your understanding, absolutely no slight is intended.
