Sujimoto's 40-Story Banana Island Tower: Is Lagos Ready for Skyscrapers?
The debate over Sijibomi Ogundele's proposed 40-story tower has exposed uncomfortable questions about Nigeria's readiness for high-rise construction — from soil capacity to regulatory enforcement.
When Sijibomi Ogundele, CEO of Sujimoto Group, announced plans for a 40-story luxury tower on Banana Island, Lagos, the response was predictable. Excitement from those who see it as proof of Nigeria’s arrival on the global luxury stage. Skepticism from those who wonder whether Lagos — a city built on reclaimed land and soft lagoon soil — can safely support a structure that tall.
Both sides have valid points. But the question is bigger than Sujimoto. It is about whether Nigeria has the regulatory framework, engineering capacity, and political will to manage high-rise construction at scale.
The Case for the Tower
Let us start with why this tower matters.
Lagos is one of the fastest-growing cities in the world, with a population expected to hit 30 million by 2035. It is also a city running out of horizontal space. The only direction to build is up.
Banana Island is one of Lagos’s most prestigious addresses — artificial, yes, but well-planned with underground utilities, proper road networks, and a master plan that few other Lagos neighbourhoods can match. A 40-story tower in this location, designed to international standards, could set a new benchmark for luxury high-rise living in West Africa.
Ogundele’s vision is not unreasonable. Dubai built the Burj Khalifa on desert sand. Singapore builds high-rise on reclaimed land. Why should Lagos — an economic powerhouse with global ambitions — settle for a low-rise skyline?
The Case Against
The engineering challenges are real, and they demand serious answers.
Soil bearing capacity: Banana Island is reclaimed land. The soil is soft lagoon sediment, not bedrock. Supporting a 40-story structure requires deep pile foundations that extend tens of metres below the surface to reach competent bearing strata. This is not impossible — Dubai and Singapore do it — but it requires rigorous geotechnical investigation and a foundation design that accounts for settlement, lateral loads, and liquefaction risk.
Wind loading: At 40 stories, wind loads become a critical design consideration. Lagos experiences significant wind speeds during seasonal storms. The structural frame must be stiff enough to limit sway — not just for safety, but for occupant comfort. No one wants to feel their building moving on the 35th floor.
Regulatory oversight: This is the biggest concern. Nigeria has building codes — the National Building Code and the Lagos State Building Control Agency — but enforcement is inconsistent. High-rise construction demands independent structural peer review, mandatory third-party materials testing, and continuous site supervision by registered engineers. These are standard in Dubai, Singapore, and London. In Lagos, they are aspirational.
Fire and evacuation: At 40 stories, conventional firefighting equipment cannot reach the upper floors. The building must have active fire suppression systems, pressurised stairwells, and evacuation plans that comply with international fire codes. Lagos’s emergency services are not equipped for a high-rise fire.
The Ikoyi Precedent
In November 2021, a 21-story building under construction in Ikoyi collapsed, killing 45 people. It was one of Nigeria’s deadliest building disasters.
The investigation revealed a familiar pattern: inadequate structural design, poor-quality materials, insufficient supervision, and regulatory failure. The developer was not a professional builder. The structural engineer’s calculations were found to be flawed. The Lagos State Building Control Agency had approved the drawings without adequate review.
No amount of luxury finish can fix a building whose foundations are unsound. And the tragedy of Ikoyi was not that it happened — it was that everyone saw it coming.
What High-Rise Construction Requires
If Lagos is serious about building up, it must also build the systems that make high-rise safe:
1. Mandatory independent structural peer review. Every high-rise design should be reviewed by an independent structural engineer registered with COREN, separate from the design team. This is standard practice in every jurisdiction with a mature construction industry.
2. Third-party materials testing. Concrete strength, steel reinforcement grade, and weld integrity must be verified by accredited laboratories, not by the contractor’s own team.
3. Continuous site supervision. A registered structural engineer must be on site during all critical construction phases — foundation pouring, slab casting, and structural steel erection.
4. Geotechnical certification. Before any foundation design is approved, a comprehensive soil investigation report must be certified by a geotechnical engineer and reviewed by the approving authority.
5. Fire engineering report. A separate fire safety design, prepared by a fire engineer, should be a mandatory part of the building approval package.
What FURD BASE Believes
We want Sujimoto’s tower to succeed. We want Lagos to have a skyline that reflects its economic ambition. But success in high-rise construction is not measured by how fast a building rises. It is measured by whether it stands — safely, for its intended lifespan.
At FURD BASE, we design structures for Nigeria and the UAE. We know what it takes to build tall on difficult soil. It requires discipline, transparency, and a regulatory framework that holds every stakeholder accountable.
The question is not whether Sijibomi Ogundele can build 40 stories on Banana Island. The question is whether Nigeria’s building control system is strong enough to hold that building to the standard it deserves.
Until that question is answered, every high-rise in Lagos is a gamble. And the stakes are too high for guesswork.