Apapa is a

Local Government Area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

located to the west of

Lagos Island Lagos Island () is the principal and central Local government areas of Nigeria, Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos, Nigeria. It was the capital of Lagos State until 1957. It is part of the Lagos Division. As of the preliminary 2006 Nigerian ce ...

. Apapa contains a number of

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...

s and terminals operated by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), including the major port of

Lagos State Lagos State (, ) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West, Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, Nigerian states, Lagos is the second List of Nigerian states by population, most populous state but the List of Nigerian states by area, smallest ...

and Lagos Port Complex (LPC).

Federal Government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

In its

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...

, the NPA itself does not refer to any port called "Port of Apapa", rather it refers to the "Port of Lagos", " Port of Port Harcourt" and "Port of Calabar".

Overview

The region of Apapa lies near the mouth of

Lagos lagoon Lagos Lagoon (Yoruba language, Yoruba: Ọ̀sà) is a lagoon found in the city of Lagos, southwest Nigeria, the most populous city in Africa. The name ''Lagos'' means 'lakes' in Portuguese language, Portuguese, therefore ''Lagos Lagoon'' is an ex ...

, and contains ports and terminals for various commodities such as

containers A container is any receptacle or enclosure for holding a product used in storage, packaging, and transportation, including shipping. Things kept inside of a container are protected on several sides by being inside of its structure. The term ...

and

bulk cargo Bulk cargo is Product (business), product cargo that is transported packaging, unpackaged in large quantities. Description Bulk cargo refers to material in either liquid or granular, particulate (as a mass of relatively small solids) form, ...

, houses, offices and a small old disused

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

station (Apapa North). It is the site of a major

container A container is any receptacle or enclosure for holding a product used in storage, packaging, and transportation, including shipping. Things kept inside of a container are protected on several sides by being inside of its structure. The term ...

terminal which was owned and operated by the Federal Government of Nigeria until March 2005, and now is operated by the Danish firm A. P. Moller-Maersk Group. Adjacent to the container port is the Tin Can Island Port, which has ro-ro facilities. It also houses some refineries like the Bua Group. It also has commercial offices of many

shipping Freight transport, also referred to as freight forwarding, is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been ...

, clearing and transportation companies. Other notable

building A building or edifice is an enclosed Structure#Load-bearing, structure with a roof, walls and window, windows, usually standing permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, a ...

s include the Folawiyo Towers. Apapa houses the

headquarters Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...

of the Nigerian

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

'' Thisday''.

History

An important bronze hoard of jewellery dating from the 16th Century was found in Apapa in 1907 and is now kept at the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

. In 1950, the development of an industrial and housing estate covering 1000

acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...

s began. The estate was completed in 1957/1958 and it flourished along with the expansion of the Apapa Wharf. The estate once accounted for a large number of industrial and

construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

workers in Lagos.

Government and infrastructure

Prisons of the Nigerian Prisons Service include: * Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison

Housing, education and social facilities

Apapa Nigeria Executive Housing Marine Road 05

The

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

provides housing for various levels of housing needs from executive requirements to average families including single occupation and multiple storied accommodation. There are several schools. The German School Lagos was formerly located in Apapa. Social and

recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for happiness, enjoyment, amusement, ...

al facilities are provided by private and public

organization An organization or organisation (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), see spelling differences) is an legal entity, entity—such as ...

s including a

boat A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size or capacity, its shape, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically used on inland waterways s ...

club located on Apapa Creek.

Transportation

Apapa contains a number of

s and terminals operated by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), including the major port of

and Lagos Port Complex (LPC).

References

External links

Apapa Local Government
{{Authority control Local Government Areas in Yorubaland Local Government Areas in Lagos State Populated coastal places in Lagos State Port cities and towns in Nigeria Ports and harbours of Lagos Neighbourhoods of Lagos