Daniel Agbiboa: Does Africa Need Elite Cities? Eko Atlantic, Climate Urbanism, and the Surrounds of Lagos

Abstract

African cities are increasingly reshaped by ambitious urban renewal projects such as Eko Atlantic City in Lagos, Nigeria—hailed as the Dubai of Africa. Situated on reclaimed land from the Atlantic Ocean, this privately financed enclave epitomizes elite-driven visions of smart and eco-cities designed to attract global investors while sidelining local realities. This lecture examines Eko Atlantic as a manifestation of "worlding cities," critiquing how such megaprojects amplify socio-spatial inequalities and ecological precarity.

The talk explores how glossy narratives of climate adaptation and urban resilience mask the displacement and disenfranchisement of Lagos's informal shoreline communities. These "surrounds" bear the brunt of land reclamation, erosion, and flooding, highlighting the unequal distribution of climate risks. The discussion probes the ethics of exclusionary urbanism and the lived experiences of those deemed disposable in the shadow of Eko Atlantic's "Great Wall."

Situating Eko Atlantic within a broader critique of neoliberal urbanism and "climate apartheid," the lecture interrogates whose desires and futures these privatized cities prioritize. It foregrounds the grit and agency of Lagos's marginalized populations, who mobilize against systemic neglect and envision inclusive alternatives. By re-centering the "surrounds" as sites of social imagination and political action, this talk challenges us to rethink urban development as equitable and inclusive amidst the intensifying pressures of climate change and global capital.

Biography

Daniel E. Agbiboa is an Associate Professor of African and African American Studies at Harvard University. He is a Faculty Associate of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Affiliate of the Harvard Bloomberg Center for Cities, and Co-Chair of the Urban Conversation Series at the Mahindra Humanities Center. His research explores urban and security governance in contemporary Africa, focusing on the relationship between state and non-state actors. Professor Agbiboa has authored acclaimed books, including They Eat Our Sweat (Oxford University Press, 2022) and Mobility, Mobilization and Counter/Insurgency (University of Michigan Press, 2022), which received the Lee Ann Fujii Best Book Award and the ISA Peace Section Best Book Award. He is a recipient of the Clarence Stone Scholar Award from the American Political Science Association, the H.F. Guggenheim Distinguished Scholar Award, and the CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar Award (2024–2026) under its Humanity's Urban Future Program. He serves on the Editorial Boards of the African Studies Review and the International Journal of Urban and Regional Research (IJURR).