A year in Naija

As promised…..

A couple years ago SERAC decided that while advocacy work and taking cases to court was extremely important for advancing policy on housing as a human right, the communities they were working with were increasingly noting the need for actual physical housing development.

So, after much research SERAC launched the Nigeria Social Housing Initiative (NSHI). The initiative had as its key objective the development of innovative solutions to the provision of affordable housing in Nigeria. Three-ish years later SERAC has established an organization that is technically now in charge of carrying out the NSHI, called Urban Spaces Innovation. In reality I think I technically work for USI but it was just incorporated last year and anyone that is employed by USI is also currently still employed by SERAC. Anyway….USI is launching this super innovative way of providing affordable housing.

In addition to USI, two other organizations are currently being formed, Alese Social Housing Development Ltd (ASHDL) and The Mobile Brick Factory –MBF (this name isn’t set in stone yet, so don’t cringe.) MBF employs a phenomenal technology from the Netherlands, known as the Flying Dutchman, that recycles building rubble to produce more durable building materials (concrete blocks, concrete, & backfill) at a 20-30% cost reduction. (Keep in mind that one of Nigeria’s biggest housing related problems is the extremely high cost of building materials…in Nigeria a bag of cement costs 1.5X what it costs in the States…) The MBF will be owned by USI, so that the products it manufactures and much of its profit can go to Alese’s social housing developments (but off course to stay sustainable, MBF will also sell to the larger market as well).

We also just launched a construction skills training program whereby selected youth of target communities (ie. communities SERAC has been working to seek justice for) will receive training in plumbing, electrical wiring, brick laying…. Participants commit to making a sweat equity contribution since the homes are being built for their communities (ahh the tangible benefits of community cohesion) and will work with the construction firms contracted out by Aleshe to receive less than market rate wages (thereby allowing Aleshe to save on labor costs!) At the same time off course these youth are learning marketable, income-generating skills (yay for workforce development!) with which they can then be employed in the larger market before and after their commitment term.

Defying the basic assumptions about social housing, we are developing units on a rent-to own basis (as opposed to perpetual rent) are working intimately with community cooperatives on everything from allocating and maintaining units to the design of both the private and public spaces in the developments (snaps for achieving appropriate design through community –led processes!)

And as if thinking about and working to institutionalize and implement this initiative hasn’t been enough excitement, along with the SERAC fam I have uncovered a number of fabulous post-work chill spots in the past couple weeks! I love Lagos!

Lately I’ve promised like ten people (including my mama who I just found out reads my blog! ‘sup mama?!) that I would upload a new entry so….here’s to keeping promises ☺

So the past month has been pretty crazy, in all arenas. Those of ya’ll who were wondering about my actual role & responsibilities at SERAC would be happy to know that I’ve been thrown deeply into the world of social housing! Now when I say I am SERAC’s social housing intern you better find a way to change the topic or Ill talk your ear off about our phenomenal, integrated & innovative model. (Don’t worry, just because we are technically not talking right now doesn’t mean I wont give you all the fabulous details….just wait a day or two dear friend!) Up until about 3 to 4 weeks ago, the social housing team at SERAC basically consisted of me and the project manager. Much of SERAC’s work is around housing so we also have a ‘right to housing team’ that consists of a project manager and a community organizer… and because our social housing initiative is predicated on the idea that adequate housing is a human right, there is some functional overlap….but alas I digress. So lovely people what do you thing changed in the social housing team over the past month?

a) SERAC all of a sudden won the non-profit organizations lottery and hired uncountable amounts of new people to the social housing team.
b) Inspired by the market for “pure water”, I figured social housing was just a fad and took my Boren funding and invested it in a massive water purification system and bag sealing machine….all that remains is coming up with a NAFDAC number, lol
c) I decided that the first step in my grand plan to rule Nigeria (and eventually the world) was to take out the social housing project manager….
d) Or he left on his own.

Well folks, if you guessed d, you are right. It’s all a bit complicated and I probably shouldn’t broadcast his business all over the world wide web but basically because he left, I am one step closer to ruling the world! (and you thought option c was far fetched…psssh lol)

In all seriousness though the project manager’s departure is a big part of the reason things have been so crazy. One day I am asking questions about the initiative that are only “not stupid” because supposedly the only stupid questions are the ones that don’t get asked…and the next day I’m spending hours in meetings with the funders and technical partners of the project praying desperately that my attempt to read every document in the office that even mentions the initiative will pay off and I’ll be able to answer all their questions. It’s been rather exhilarating.

Somehow I’ve managed to be able to contribute meaningfully and am well on my way to convincing myself that the tens of thousands of dollars I owe Upenn (which apparently I have to start paying back this month!) might have actually been a worthwhile investment.

Those of ya’ll with stamina or who are interested in housing (or who are related to me and as such have a moral obligation to care about my work ☺ ) please come back in a day or two and Ill explain all the fabulous details of the Social Housing Initiative!

1) The constant praying broadcasted by the 12 foot loud speaker at the mosque across the street from my aunty’s house doesn’t bother me anymore. My first couple of weeks here I could barely sleep, granted it was during Ramadan but seriously it seemed like there was round the clock praying going on there…and off course it was in a mix of Arabic & Yoruba so I understood nothing. Now, I barely even notice the praying. (I’m going to choose to believe that this is caused by my acclimatization as opposed to the confounding explanatory variables of my now sleeping in a different room in the house or the dramatic decrease in praying times as Ramadan is now over.)

From my old bedroom window....notice the HUGE speaker....

2) I’ve stopped converting from naira to dollars. Anytime someone would quote me a price I’d immediately convert at the rate of 150 naira to $1 and would often be like “ohhh that is so cheap!” After being almost over budget for the month of September I’ve realized that thinking in dollars is not going to work!

3) I can haggle prices! I have consistently been able to get a taxi to take me to work for 500 naira and bring me home for the same amount. Ya’ll should see me in action! Most mornings I walk to the taxi park and after exchanging the appropriate casualties my prospective driver offers to take me to Ogudu for anywhere from 1,000 naira to 1,500. I feign anger at the proposal of such a high price and proceed to explain in the best pidgin English I’m able to conjure up, that every morning I pay only 500 naira, so why is it that this morning I am to take on the financial burden of supporting his family for the entire week. Okay admittedly I sometimes go overboard but hey do you know what 1,500 naira could buy me?

4) I no longer try to preempt reactions of my “American stomach” by taking anti-diarrhea pills (this was probably just a bad idea anyway lol)

5) I’ve started drinking pure water! Because of Nigeria’s infrastructural challenges, especially as they relate to clean drinking water, “pure water” meets the average person’s drinking water needs. The pure water business is allegedly not extremely well regulated so even though pure water is supposed to be sanitary and manufacturers often include NAFDAC numbers on the packages (which suggest that they’ve met the Nigerian food and drug administration’s criteria), often times pure water is really nothing more than bagged tap water. But rest assured this happens in the states too, no?…. just think “bottled water,” and after all if other Nigerians can do it well….. (abeg o please don’t tell my aunty, she doesn’t quite know the strength of my stomach…lol)

6) I gave in and got extentions! Lol I thought if anywhere, Nigeria would be the place where my “liberate Black women from western beauty standards by embracing natural hair” argument would sell but after about a week of constantly being asked why I wasn’t “doing my hair” I decided that hey maybe India Arie is right and I am not my hair….

7) When NEPA (aka the Power Holding Company of Nigeria) takes power I continue with what I’m doing and wait for the generator…in fact, Ive even learned how to work the generator! Anyone who has had to pull the cord on a manual generator before knows that this is a task requiring proper muscles! lol (for the uninitiated think old school lawn mower’s and pulling ignition cables…)

I am reminded that I still have a long way to go though when I remember what happened on Monday of this week….SERAC collaborated with LAMCOFOR (The Lagos Marginalized Communities Forum) to put on an event celebrating UN World Habitat Day and to further the messages that forced evictions are wrong and that adequate housing is a human right. Amnesty International, which also does work on forced evictions sent a brilliant photo display of communities that have had to bare the brunt of forced evictions. As the “coordinator” of the exhibit, near the end of the program, I was told to speak briefly about the photos. I was nervous about what I was going to say and my ability to be concise, as such I didn’t even think about the audience’s ability to understand my intonation. When I was called up to the mic I walked up there as confidently as possible and began my short description. I wasn’t more than three sentences in when everyone burst out laughing, luckily their laughter was prefaced with audible whispers of “what is she saying” and “where is she from” so I quickly realized that my manner of speaking (and thank God, not any wardrobe malfunctions), was the reason for the laughter. lol When it was clear that my “big English” wasn’t going to work, Bayo came to my rescue and started translating into Yoruba (read: much of the audience understood English, just not my kind lol, but Bayo’s Yoruba was probably an attempt to make me feel less ridiculous…) Unfortunately for Bayo, his Yoruba skills didn’t quite cut it and he found himself unable to translate about half of what I said…and yes the audience laughed at him too…. lol so yes, while I am still adjusting I can take some condolence in the fact that everything/everyone is a work in progress ☺

Furthermore Bayo began his “translation” by affirming my Nigerian-ness so all my street cred isn’t lost…not yet at least lol.

Bayo and I after our moments of shame...still smiling

My attempt at shorter but hopefully more regular posts….

So as most of you know Nigeria’s religious landscape is really interesting in that about half of the country is Muslim and half is Christian. This dynamic has created some really interesting moments in Nigerian history. These include really troublesome events like the Jos massacres in 2008 [read more here: Jos riots] as well as really awesome 4 day weekends, like I just experienced Monday and Tuesday of this week were public holidays in Nigeria to celebrate Eid, the end of Ramadan. I spent the long weekend with Moses’ family and then with Selina & Carmen (go Penn!) on Victoria Island.

Victoria Island is the commercial center of Lagos. In many ways it is what Manhattan is to New York. It’s much more developed (with regards to infrastructure) than most other parts of Lagos and is home to some of the wealthiest Nigerians. I am convinced that it is because of the Island and the amenities it hosts that Lagos is considered the 34th most expensive city to live in. There are a number of places on the Island that Selina aptly termed “little America’s” including a number of compounds/complexes built by multinational oil companies to house their employees and a neighborhood known as Victoria Garden City. I didnt take pictures of these areas but I will at some point and post a little photo essay on the differences between these neighborhoods on the Island and many of the areas on the mainland (including my beloved Ketu-the neighborhood I live in- that my cousin calls “the hood.” lol)

My weekend on the Island was good. I got to experience a little bit of what Lagos’ arts & culture/nightlife have to offer. I went to see a performance of the acclaimed South African play “Sizwe Banzi is Dead” at what is currently Nigeria’s most consistent venue for live theatre (according to their website), Terra Kulture.

A scene from Sizwe Banzi is Dead

I also went with Selina & Carmen and some of their friends to a great outdoor lounge known as Amber. The vibe of the place was quite good. Apart from the tiff that we witnessed when two women (who I should add were NOT nigerian) randomely got into a fight & broke some bottles, the spot was pretty classy. It had an extensive bar selection and medium size pool with enticing super blue water (though i guess snot enticing enough because no one went in). Amber sort of felt like a rooftop bar in NY or DC except nicer because it was overlooking the water and was at ground level. Next time Ill take pics of the actual environment. But for now:

Beautiful women

Overall the arts & culture/nightlife scene in Lagos seems pretty legit.

And now for my birthday!!! (which was yesterday!!)

Dinma (my colleague/friend at SERAC) had the same bday as me so we combined and got a cake & some wine and had a little mid-day party at work. Here are some pics:

Things that surprised me: 1) we actually were drinking wine in the office lol (altho note the ED said no sending off any reports after the party before two very distinct communities we work with Maroko & Makoko become one.)
2) despite the fact that there are two muslims in the office a Christian colleague prayed for Dinma & I, a prayer which off course was prefaced by all the staff singing “We are saying thank you Jesus.” The heavily instilled American philosophy of separation of church and state had me sitting in the corner freaking out that we weren’t respecting the Muslims in our group. But ‘alas after a convo with some colleagues after the fact I’ve come to accept that this is just the way things are done in Naija.

much love & religious freedom to ya’ll.

Wow so my first 2 weeks (officially two weeks on wed in Lagos have been fabulous! I love this city, I love my job, & I love my friends (both new and old) who are helping to make the transition super smooth.  So my first week at SERAC was phenomenal. They threw me right into the thick of things and even though I had a near-breakdown on Friday because there was so much to do that I didnt get to eat “lunch” until about and hour before I left work I am so grateful that they have so much faith in me that they’ve been able to entrust me with such legit responsibilities. So for a quick rundown of the week:
 

Day 1
I went in on Monday morning bright and early (for those of ya’ll who have painstakingly had to deal with my CP time you would have been proud of me!) My first task/project was to begin work on editing a publication SERAC is producing about a horrendous piece of legislation that has been enshrined in the Nigerian constitution since the 70s called the Land Use Act. I’m sure Ill write more about this with time but in one very simplified explanation, this Act put all ownership of land in the hands of the government and constructed an extremely problematic & expensive system for private individuals to acquire land thereby perpetually hindering land markets and the ability of many Nigerians, particularly the poor to excercise their right to property and often times housing. After about two hours of reading and editing it was time for me to “get into the community.” So along with a few co-workers I took my first trip out to “Maroko.”

One of SERAC’s key commitments is to a community of people who formerly inhabited a part of Lagos known as Maroko (for those of you familiar with Lagos this is presently what is known as Lekki.) Maroko was a vibrant community with residents from various social and economic classes (except the wealthiest bracket off course.) In 1990 the then military government of Lagos State embarked on a 7-day long demolition of this community under the premise that the land upon which it was built was prone to flooding and as such unfit for habitation. I intend to write more about this really important event and its repercussions (I know all you urban studies minded people in the states are already thinking about urban renewal in the states so dont worry I’ll write a post about the similarities [and differences] real soon..) But basically SERAC has been working with the people of “Maroko” since the mid-90s to try to get them reparations and compensation for the inhumane injustice meted out upon them. To that end , SERAC has been a huge supporter of the Maroko community so when a government constructed apartment housing many Maroko evictees collapsed the Thursday before I started work SERAC had to act.

So after my brief 2 hour introduction to the Land Use Act that is in many ways fundamentally linked to the Maroko demolition I was on my way to help administer money that SERAC was giving to families from the collapsed building to use in securing alternative accommodations. I was impressed by the sheer numbers of people who came out to the meeting (who knew that they were NOT going to be getting money because they did not qualify) and surprised by how community folks welcomed me (many tried to greet me in my native tongue ibibio once they knew I was from Akwa Ibom….altho one dude did come up to me and say “they say you are an oyibo?” lol) On the flip side though I was annoyed by how opportunistic some folks were trying to be. SERAC was only giving families with children money and I swear had community leaders who knew residents well not been present folks would have been snatching kids and been like “this is my baby.”

All in all Day 1 was good. Massive amounts of traffic driving from the Island back to the  Mainland made me appreciate hawkers who sold everything from plantain chips and popcorn to cds and bible concordances. The Nigerian entrepreneurial spirit is a beautiful thing.

Okay to keep from writing a novel:

Day 2: Spent the day in the office editing the Land Use Act document. Also I had my first encounter with public transportation in Lagos. I took a keke , an open air taxi that is small enough to weave through traffic (and I am convinced fall into gutters!) and sort of feels like you are on a roller coaster ride….but alas I got home safely.

Keke (not the one I was in but you get the idea...)

Day 3: Lord Peter Goldsmith (LPG), former Attorney General of the UK came to Lagos to meet with the Maroko community at a press/community event facilitated by SERAC.

SERAC staff with Lord Peter Goldsmith (per usual I was trolling around and missed the pic)

I was “in charge” of the press (ie. making sure they were registered, comfortable & got paid.) I’ve never worked with the press in the States but can someone who has let me know, do we pay the press for covering events in the states? Apparently we do here in Nigeria in order to “cover transportation costs” and/or depending on who you ask, to make sure the event “gets covered.”

All you lawyers/budding lawyers can really appreciate this: The Maroko community has been working within the Nigerian court system for over 19 years to seek justice for their evictions and after 19 years of constant delay and no domestic progress LPG is working with SERAC and his law firm Debevoise & Plimpton to take their case to the African Human Rights Commision. The case has been accepted by the Commision and will be heard in the Gambia later this year! I, the folks at SERAC, the Maroko community, LPG &  his staff at D& P are hopeful that a judgement will be found in favor of the Maroko people, thereby setting an international precedent that forced evictions are unacceptable and amount to a denial of human rights!

The children of Maroko evictees who sang a song about the remediation their families are seeking

Day 4: Collection of evidence. We (myself and two colleagues) spent the day collecting Deeds of Lease, land purchase receipts, Government Allocation letters (as retribution for evictions), letters from schools, death certificates, recorded stories of what happened in 1990 and tons of other documents that will all help to make the case that the people of Maroko were deprived of a number of human rights (right to own property, right to housing, right to education, right to health….) as a consequence of their forced eviction.

I was struck by how much people have held on to the hope that the day of justice would come. The amounts of documents people had and the level to which they were kept in tact amazed me. I was also encouraged by the many young(er) people who came out with the documents of their deceased parents emboldened by a commitment to seek justice and honor their late parents.

1 of the more than 500 documents we collected asserting that people had ownership of the property from which they were evicted.

By day 4 the ability of the hawkers and their array of goods to assuage the boredom of Island to Mainland traffic had wore off. lol

Day 5: In office day full of editing, staff meetings (ie my introduction to workplace politics in nigeria….lets just say Nigerians LOVE to talk and it wasnt too pretty…hence the super late lunch & near breakdown), and an awesome meeting with the ED of SERAC who was able to give me the grand vision for SERAC’s social housing initiative, which I will share at some point on this blog and blow the minds of you planning/urban studies/housing ppl who have dance parties over innovative solutions to urban problems. (lol, okay I confess….)

The staff meeting (the body language should tell you something lol)

If you are still reading….. You deserve a trophy. Ill wait until tomorrow to upload my post about my weekend on the Island, my thoughts on inequality in Lagos & why it is the 34th most expensive city in the world (source: Selina’s fb page).

Finally on the train of thought of friends….Ive been sooo blessed by folks at SERAC who have helped me soooooo much with figuring out the everything from buying a cell phone (meet: Bayo, a super awesome 20-something year old lawyer who is going to take the world of international law to the next frontier! and on a slightly less important note has fabulous taste in music & random funny skits…), helping me to catch taxis (meet: Dinma, the 20-something year old DIVA who doesnt wasnt be a lawyer because of the superfluous speech they use, but will probably be one anyway  and force them to change that! , and finally keep me entertained by laughing with and often at me for random things (meet: the entire office). lol.

Much love & trophies to everyone who even tried to read this whole thing! I promise I will try make shorter posts.

Hey folks,

So I’m finally in Lagos! After 10ish hours of flying, freaking out that someone had taken my luggage and then after retreating all 3 suitcases (you would think i learned nothing from IHP’s pack light philosophy) I was greeted by my awesome cousins and welcomed with a full evening of light/electricity by the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (aka the new NEPA). One of Nigeria’s biggest problems is the lack of constant electricity supply so my full evening of PHCN electricity (as opposed to us having to use the generator) must be a sign that Nigeria is ready for me! lol

One of the most notable things about Lagos for me when I came two years ago was the extremely thick air.  It was an environmentalist’ nightmare and I actually noticed that I breathed better when I left for Uyo (a city in Akwa Ibom, my home state).So I was shocked when leaving the airport the a air was breathable! Lagos has a “newish” governor, Babatunde Fashola that is doing some amazing things for Lagos and according to my cousin, environmental regulations that limit air pollution has been one of those things.  So if you didnt believe me that Nigeria is ready for me, surely Lagos is!  Ill write more later about other awesome “new” things I’ve noticed & post pics, but for now hunger calls & my internet cafe time has run out.

Much love, electricity  & clean air.

At the beginning of Gateway this summer we all recorded our hopes & fears for our 6-weeks together.  It was a great way to have a meaningful initial conversation without being overly sentimental. Even more, it was awesome to look back at the end & be able to reflect on the ways in which both lists materialized. So as I begin my 10 day countdown to departure here’s to my hopes & fears for the year: 

Hopes 

• I’ve heard & read phenomenal things about the work SERAC does & I’m thrilled to be able to work with them and contribute to their social housing initiatives. I want my experience with them, and theirs with me to be meaningful & productive. 
•  My Uncle Mfon says “Lagos bubbles!” I hope I can really get to know this city, with its requisite action without too many misadventures (ie getting scammed and/or kidnapped), and without too much protectionism from my kindhearted but easily worried yet wonderful host/aunty. 
• I have a huge extended family. Partly because we so often call someone who is related through 10 degrees of separation our cousins. Nonetheless, I hope this year I can actually get to really know my family that lives in Nigeria. Okay okay, that is a lot of people to get to know; at the very least, I want to be able to draw my family tree… without help.
• Its awesome that because I am Nigerian I do not have to deconstruct for others the notion that my going to Nigeria is about trying to save Africa. To be honest with ya’ll though, much of my motivation does spring from alientated feelings & concepts about Nigeria. To this regard I hope that my desire to know my homeland, returning as a young adult, will be greater than my good intentions  to “save Nigeria.” ‘Cuz honestly ‘to hell with good intentions‘ also applies to Africa.
• I am a gregarious, loud, energetic, sometimes-sensitive, always crazy, wannabe intentional, sometimes-intellectual community-craving being! I hope for a super diverse community of friends & family that allow me to be fully me.

Fears

• My efforts to keep in touch will fail (ie Ill lack discipline in updating folks &/or Nigeria’s horrendous electrical grid will preclude my efforts) & unlike when I studied abroad junior spring, a pesky little incident known as graduation makes it that I won’t be able to just come back to all my friends at Penn…
• That I wont be able to shake my need for security in knowing my future plans and as such will be so consumed with figuring out what comes after Nigeria that I wont learn how to just be in the moment.
• That the rampant and arguably over-zealous Christianity in Nigeria will make me disillusioned with Jesus as an intensely radical figure who I believe promises real hope. 
• Off course I cant forget the small fears like being hospitalized again and getting infused with 4 IVs and swearing that I came to Nigeria to die as happened on my last visit or the gangsta’ wall geckos that are bolder than the squirrels on Penn’s campus….yes I am an ajebota.

Please pray for me