Nigeria's floating school in the 'Venice of Lagos'

On the lagoon of Nigeria’s capital Lagos lies the Makoko slum, home to nearly 100,000 people.

The residents of the water community, predominantly fishermen, live on stilts and move around in boats.

However, a prototype floating structure stands out amongst the rest, the Makoko floating school.

Constructed between 2012 and 2013, the school was constructed by a Nigerian architect, Kunlé Adeyemi.

In boats, students often make their way to the pyramid structure which sits on a platform that consists of plastic barrels to give balance.

the “Venice of Africa”: video of Lagos' amazing floating informal city, Makoko, and the Floating School https://t.co/U08ym8PO1q #fb

— Tim McCormick (@tmccormick) February 27, 2016

Speaking to Reuters, Shemede Noah, the director of the school said, “I’m very happy about it because in the whole community, we only built on pile and steel. Nobody experienced floating school, floating structure because by the time they started building the school everybody was saying that it’s unbelievable, we can’t wait to see it, it can’t happen.”

The institution, deemed as a pillar of hope, gives the residents an opportunity for 100 students to be educated.

In 2013, Makoko was on the verge of demolition, but since the rise of the floating school the local government wants to incorporate the design into its own urban planning.