The Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) has warned residents who patronise traders operating on roads, medians, walkways, setbacks and other unauthorised public spaces that they will face arrest and prosecution from next week.
LAWMA Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Muyiwa Gbadegesin, disclosed the planned enforcement on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at the authority’s headquarters in Lagos.
According to him, the move is part of a renewed enforcement strategy aimed at tackling illegal street trading, indiscriminate waste disposal and the obstruction of public infrastructure across the state.
Gbadegesin said the enforcement would no longer focus solely on traders occupying prohibited spaces but would also target people who buy goods from them.
He explained that Section 151(2) of the Lagos State Environmental Management and Protection Law 2017 makes it an offence to purchase goods exposed or offered for sale in prohibited locations.
“From next week, anyone found buying from traders operating on roadsides, medians, walkways, setbacks or other unauthorised spaces will be arrested, alongside the traders, and prosecuted in accordance with the law,” he said.
According to the LAWMA chief executive, anyone convicted under the relevant provision could face a fine of N90,000, six months’ imprisonment, or both.
The authority said the decision is intended to discourage residents from sustaining illegal roadside markets through patronage.
Gbadegesin said traders continue to occupy roadsides, medians and other public spaces partly because residents continue to buy from them.
LAWMA said illegal roadside and median markets frequently generate waste that is dumped in drainage channels, on roads and in other public spaces.
The agency said the practice can obstruct drainage systems, worsen traffic conditions and create public-health risks.
“Our objective is to stop the cycle that allows illegal trading and indiscriminate waste disposal to return after enforcement operations,” Gbadegesin said, adding that buyers must understand that their patronage contributes to the problem and that they are also accountable under the law.
The authority said it is also strengthening waste collection in inner streets and communities around areas where illegal dumping had previously been cleared.
Gbadegesin said identified service gaps would be addressed, while deliberate dumping, re-dumping and patronage of illegal markets would attract enforcement.
He urged residents and businesses to patronise recognised markets and use approved waste-collection channels, stressing that convenience should not come at the expense of environmental sanitation, road safety and the orderly use of public spaces.
The planned enforcement marks a shift in Lagos’ campaign against illegal street trading, with the state now warning that both sellers and the customers who patronise them could face legal consequences.