…Revolutionary Academy Brings Education, Power, and Clean Water to Saga Island

LAGOS — A historic milestone was recorded on Saga Island, Lagos, as Slum2School Africa commissioned Nigeria’s first fully eco-friendly Green Academy — a groundbreaking project designed to deliver quality education, clean water, electricity, and internet connectivity to a community long deprived of basic infrastructure.

For decades, Saga, a riverine settlement on the Lagos lagoon, had no classrooms, electricity, or potable water. Parents who tried to send their children to schools across the lagoon often faced long, unsafe, and costly journeys. That reality changed when Slum2School Africa, one of Africa’s leading education nonprofits founded in 2012 by Orondaam Otto, fulfilled a decade-long commitment to provide the community with a permanent learning facility.

Speaking at the commissioning, Otto said the Academy represented the fulfillment of a vision long nurtured.

“We always said the children of Saga deserved more than band-aid solutions. They deserved a school of their own,” he declared.

The launch drew over 200 volunteers, teachers, and partners who sailed across the lagoon, alongside more than 400 community members, government officials, corporate partners, and traditional leaders who gathered to celebrate the landmark event.

Innovation Meets Education

The Green Academy stands as a model for sustainable education in remote communities, featuring:

Bamboo Architecture: Eco-friendly and adapted to lagoon conditions.

Solar Power: The community’s first source of electricity.

Clean Water Systems: Boreholes and rainwater harvesting now provide safe drinking water.

Biogas Energy: Waste converted into clean energy, enhancing hygiene.

Digital Connectivity: Satellite internet linking Saga to classrooms worldwide.

Holistic Services: Health care, psychosocial support, play areas, and teacher housing.

The facility can accommodate over 250 children from Saga and neighboring fishing islands — many attending formal school for the very first time.

Government and education leaders hailed the initiative as a breakthrough.

Hon. Sikiru Adeniyi Owolomose, Vice Chairman of Epe Local Government, speaking on behalf of the Chairperson, Princess Surah Olayemi Animashaun, described the Academy as a project that “restored hope to our children and renewed parents’ confidence in education.”

From the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board, Hon. Owolabi Falana praised the project as “equity in action,” pledging government support to replicate the model. Representatives from UBEC, TRCN, and the Lagos State Ministry of Education also expressed readiness to collaborate.

Corporate and civil society partners, including BioMérieux International — the project’s lead partner — United Airlines, HP, and others, were instrumental in bringing the Academy to life.

Nigeria currently has over 20 million out-of-school children, the highest number in the world, many living in marginalized communities like Saga. Experts believe the Green Academy provides a replicable model that integrates education with essential infrastructure — potentially transforming schooling in underserved regions.

For Saga residents, the commissioning was deeply emotional. Parents toured the classrooms in awe, children ran into their first play areas, and elders shed tears as solar lights illuminated the lagoon for the first time.

“We thought we would never see this day,” said one father. “Now, for the first time, our children will learn here at home.”

Otto stressed that the Academy is just the beginning.

“The goal is not one school,” he said. “The goal is to show what is possible, then replicate it across Nigeria and Africa.”

Slum2School has since launched a pledge campaign to sustain the Academy and expand the model to other underserved communities.