January 7, 2009

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(by Dayo Olopade. Dayo holds degrees in Literature and African Studies from Yale University, and is the Washington reporter for The Root.)

IBADAN, NIGERIA -- The last Saturday of every month in Lagos is reserved for a governmentally mandated "environmental holiday." Citizens are barred from leaving their homes until noon that day, and instead are directed to clean their homes. In a country where the adage "cleanliness is next to godliness" can be found printed on buses and street murals, this is no great surprise. Sincere but unintentional, this odd form of individual "environmentalism" does have some appreciable collective benefits. Abundant petroleum, subsidized to a price of 70 Naira (50 cents) per litre, plus a lack of efficient transport alternatives, ensures that, left unbothered, everybody drives everywhere -- all the time. By keeping cars off the road in congested, cacophonic Lagos (much like Beijing in the days before the Olympic games), the one-day policy produces a substantial improvement in local air quality.

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