Lagos State bans live music in pubs, restaurants

The pronouncement was made by Adebola Shabi, general manager of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA).

The decision was influenced by petitions from residents lamenting disturbance from nearby beer parlours, clubs and religious houses. "Any new church to be built must come and get a sign off from the agency. (Old churches) should be soundproof now. It must be acoustic," Shabi said.

"Any complaint from residents (around restaurants, drinking spots and suchlike) henceforth will (lead to a) sanction. We must discourage needless noise-making at our residences."

The ban comes a year after Lagos state shut down 70 churches, 20 mosques and 11 hotels and several clubs and beer parlours. The state also disallowed the use of makeshift buildings as places of worship.

“As at today," Shabi said last year, "we are only able to reduce the noise level to about 35%. That is not a pass mark yet. So until we reach that target of 70 to 80%, we will continue the enforcement. Enforcement is a continuous exercise and we have set a target for ourselves. We want to ensure that Lagos is noise-free by the year 2020. With our status as a mega city, by year 2020 we will be free of noise.’’

Lagos state has for years tried to curb noise pollution in the busy metropolis, with former governor of Lagos Babatunde Fashola introducing a horn-free day intended to discourage drivers from using horns in 2015.