Lagos

== Administration ==
Lagos was formerly the capital city of [[Nigeria]], but it has since been replaced by [[Abuja]]. Abuja officially became the capital of [[Nigeria]] on 12 December 1991, although the decision to move the federal capital had been made in now Act no. 6 of 1976. Lagos is also home to the High Court of the [[Lagos State Judiciary]], housed in an old colonial building on Lagos Island.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nigeria-law.org/LagosStateJudiciaryInBrief.htm|title=Lagos State Judiciary|publisher=Nigeria Law Online|access-date=4 April 2012|archive-date=21 May 2013|archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/6Glkg1Lok?url=http://www.nigeria-law.org/LagosStateJudiciaryInBrief.htm}}</ref>

[[File:Map of the Local Government Areas of Lagos.png|thumb|upright=2.5|A map showing the 16 [[Local Government Areas in Nigeria|LGAs]] making up Lagos Metropolitan Area]]
In terms of administration, Lagos is not a single [[municipality]] and therefore has no overall city administration.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unhabitat.org/downloads/docs/9175_77451_Cities_and_CitizensSeries_Addis_casablanca_Lagos.pdf |title=Cities & Citizens Series:''Urban Iniquities in three Cities'' |publisher=Unhabit Online |access-date=4 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131013154517/http://www.unhabitat.org/downloads/docs/9175_77451_Cities_and_CitizensSeries_Addis_casablanca_Lagos.pdf |archive-date=13 October 2013 }}</ref> The geographical city limits of Metropolitan Lagos comprise 16 of the 20 Local Government Areas of Lagos State. The latter entity provides overall government for the metropolitan region. The former Municipality of Lagos, which covered Lagos Island, Ikoyi, and Victoria Island as well as some mainland territory, was managed by the Lagos City Council (LCC), but it was disbanded in 1976 and divided into several [[Local Government Areas in Nigeria|Local Government Areas]] (most notably Lagos Island LGA, [[Lagos Mainland|Lagos Mainland LGA]] and [[Eti-Osa|Eti-Osa LGA]]).<ref>{{cite book|title=Public Admin. Dev. Urban local government finance in Nigeria: ''The case of Lagos municipal area''|page=12: 19–38| doi= 10.1002/pad.4230120103 |author=Dr. Dele Olowu |year=1992}}</ref>

The mainland beyond the Municipality of Lagos, on the other hand, included several separate towns and settlements such as [[Mushin, Nigeria|Mushin]], Ikeja and Agege. In the wake of the 1970s Nigerian oil boom, Lagos experienced a population explosion, untamed economic growth, and unmitigated rural migration. This caused the outlying towns and settlements to develop rapidly, thus forming the present-day "Lagos Metropolitan Area", also known as "Metropolitan Lagos". The history of Lagos is still evidenced in the layout of the LGAs that display the unique identities of the cultures that created them.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}

By 2006, the metro area around Lagos had extended beyond Lagos State's boundaries and attained a [[megacity]] status. This much larger area is referred to as "Greater Metropolitan Lagos" or "Lagos Megacity Region", which is a continuously built-up land area of an additional {{convert|1535.4|km2|sqmi|lk=out|abbr=off}}, in LGAs situated next to Lagos's eastern and western city limits in Lagos State, and also beyond its northern limits, spilling into some LGAs in adjoining [[Ogun State]]. Ogun State LGAs that have become part of Greater Metropolitan Lagos include [[Obafemi Owode]], [[Sagamu]], [[Ifo, Ogun State|Ifo]], [[Ado-Odo/Ota]] and part of [[Ewekoro]].<ref name="The sustainable city"/>

Today, the word ''Lagos'' most often refers to the urban area, called "Metropolitan Lagos" in Nigeria, which includes both the islands of the former municipality of Lagos and the mainland suburbs. Lagos State government is responsible for some of the utilities including roads and transportation, power, water, health, and education. Metropolitan Lagos extends over 16 of the 20 LGAs of [[Lagos State]] and contains about 85% of the population of Lagos State, including some semi-rural areas.<ref name="METRO">{{cite web |url= http://www.africaleadership.org/rc/Managing%20Metropolitan%20Lagos.pdf |title= Managing Metropolitan Lagos |publisher= R.Rasaki |access-date= 4 April 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120513124623/http://www.africaleadership.org/rc/Managing%20Metropolitan%20Lagos.pdf |archive-date= 13 May 2012 }}</ref> Lagos has a considerable number of high-rise buildings that dominate its skyline. Most of the tall buildings are located in the downtown Central Business District.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}