Nigeria’s Ayetoro Community Battles Rising Threat Of Atlantic Ocean Erosion

Ayetoro, a coastal community in southern Nigeria, is losing more of its land to the Atlantic Ocean every year, with the remains of homes swallowed by the sea now scattered along the shrinking shoreline.

According to a report by AFP, the community, popularly known as “The Happy Place”, is home to about 10,000 people and was founded in 1947 by communist-inspired Christians who sought to establish a society based on communal ownership and sharing of assets.

Today, however, Ayetoro is facing an uncertain future as coastal erosion continues to destroy homes, infrastructure and livelihoods. Families whose houses are swept away are forced to move further inland, only for the advancing waters to threaten them again.

Coastal erosion in Ayetoro has accelerated since the early 2000s, with 19 other communities in the Ilaje district facing similar challenges as the Atlantic Ocean continues to encroach on the coastline, a situation worsened by climate change.

A study by spatial planning specialist Barnabas Ogirima James found that Ayetoro’s coastline receded by an average of 15 metres annually between 1987 and 2022.

The situation is further compounded by rising sea levels. A 2024 study published in Scientific Reports estimated that sea levels along West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea are rising at approximately 3.9 millimetres per year, about 10.5 per cent above the global average.

Traditional ruler of Ayetoro, Oluwambe Ojagbohunmi, said the scale of the destruction could be seen by comparing photographs of the community taken years ago with its current state.

“I took this photo 14 years ago. Today, if you stand in the exact spot where I was, you’ll see there are no buildings left,” the king said.

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An old photograph shows a telecommunications tower surrounded by houses, but the same structure is now surrounded by water and the remains of buildings destroyed by the ocean.

“My palace once had 100 rooms. Only about a dozen remain,” Ojagbohunmi said.

The king’s bedroom is now located in the section of the palace closest to the sea, where crashing waves frequently disturb his sleep.

“This is our land. Where can we go? It’s complicated,” he said.

The impact of the erosion extends beyond the destruction of buildings, with residents facing repeated displacement and deteriorating living conditions.

In April, a storm caused sea levels to rise around the community, leaving occupants of the palace trapped indoors for a week.

“I’ve become a refugee in my own community. Since losing my father’s house in 2019 — swallowed and destroyed by the ocean — the only thing I managed to save was my university degree certificate,” said Akingboye Thompson, a 35-year-old fisherman and personal assistant to the king.

He said some families had relocated more than three times as the ocean continued to advance, while plastic waste carried by the waves now litters the community’s streets.

Many houses in Ayetoro are constructed from wood and iron sheets, with residents relying on elevated wooden walkways to move around parts of the settlement.

Oluwasegun Babatunde Esan, a landscape architecture researcher at the University of Lagos who collaborates with Harvard University, said activities on land were also contributing to the problem.

He explained that rapid urbanisation in Nigeria had resulted in floodplains, swamps and coastal areas being cleared for settlements, reducing natural spaces capable of absorbing storm surges and floodwater.

“There is growing demand for land, whether for housing or industrial activities,” Esan said, stressing the need for stricter regulation.

He also recommended the development of natural barriers through the planting of mangroves and coconut palms to help protect vulnerable coastal communities.

Ayetoro occasionally receives relief materials from government agencies and non-governmental organisations, but residents say the assistance has not been enough to address the scale of the crisis.

The community’s only health centre has already been lost to the advancing waters.

“Sometimes the water reaches window level, yet we have to keep working. We help women give birth under these conditions. We have no choice,” said Omomiye Oluwaseun, a 26-year-old healthcare worker.

She said residents were increasingly exposed to health risks as brackish water repeatedly inundated the community.

“People suffer from high blood pressure and water-borne diseases like typhoid and diarrhea because of the water they use,” Oluwaseun said.

“The sea has already contaminated the water supply, yet they use it for cooking because it is the only water available to them.”

The erosion has also disrupted education, with schools repeatedly relocated alongside homes destroyed by the sea.

Teacher Sunday Akinjoye, 45, said the repeated displacement was affecting students psychologically and making it harder for them to concentrate on their studies.

“Schools have been relocated several times, just like their homes. It takes a psychological toll on them. Their ability to concentrate on their studies drops drastically,” he said.

Despite repeated attempts by residents to adapt by rebuilding and relocating, the Atlantic continues to advance, threatening to erase more of Ayetoro’s homes, infrastructure and history.