
Makoko is called “The Venice of Slums” as most of the 300,000 residents or so live on stilted homes atop a fetid lagoon, carrying goods via canoe including fresh water. Nigeria is a wealthy country, blessed with abundant resources, but corruption and misallocation of resources mean that 112 million people live in poverty, and investment in health and education are shockingly low. This, as the country is projected to become the world’s third most populous by 2050, with over 420 million people.

Wealthy Lagosians flock to beach clubs such as these on Victoria Island, the playground of the city (and the country's) super wealthy. On the day I arrived, the guard asked me for 20,000 naira to enter the beach club on the left, or approximately $46 at the official exchange rate - an astronomical sum to most Nigerians, where the majority make only slightly more than that per month.

The breakwater at Eko Atlantic.

Eko Atlantic is one of the biggest development projects in Nigeria. Situated entirely on reclaimed land, the project is intended for an elite business district to emerge on the edge of Lagos' crowded Victoria Island.

Middle class developments in the upscale Lekki neighborhood abut informal housing.

Inequality in the Apapa neighborhood.

Makoko is separated from the Lagoon in part by a wetlands, which acts as a filter for some of the worst pollution from the informal area.

Makoko and the Third Mainland Bridge, a crucial artery in Lagos.

Opportunity knocks: temporary informal housing appears wherever there is a vacancy in ownership. Sometimes this occurs near construction sites - this one in the heart of Victoria Island, Lagos' most wealthy district.

Makoko, "The Venice of Slums".

There are no roads in Makoko. Everything - including fresh water - must arrive by canoe.