About CityLens

Why CityLens exists

People in Nigerian cities often navigate by neighbourhood names, junctions, markets and landmarks rather than complete street addresses. Many useful places — from home businesses and repair shops to schools, clinics and worship centres — also have little or no formal online presence. The result is an incomplete picture of what exists and where to find it.

CityLens was built to close that gap: first by making areas and landmarks easier to understand, then by mapping the places and services that make everyday city life work.

What you can do today

CityLens currently covers Lagos and Abuja. You can explore the map, browse categories or ask in plain language — for example, “find a tailor near me” or “show me cafés with Wi-Fi in Lekki.”

Coverage is still growing and varies by area. CityLens distinguishes mapped locations from indexed or approximate information so you can understand what the product knows and where more work is needed.

How the map grows

CityLens brings together source-linked observations from public datasets, websites and local online sources. It checks for duplicates and looks for signs that a place has opened, moved or closed, helping the map improve as cities change.

Search also shows us where coverage is thin. When people look for something CityLens cannot answer well, that gap helps prioritise what to investigate and add next.

What we're building toward

The long-term goal is a dependable map of Nigerian cities: their neighbourhoods, landmarks, businesses, services, markets and community institutions — not only restaurants and lifestyle venues.

As coverage deepens, the same place data can help people discover what is around them and help teams in retail, finance, planning and research understand what exists where. More advanced analysis comes later, after the map itself is strong enough to support it.

CityLens is an independent product built by CityLens Media. For partnerships, data collaborations or press, email hello@citylens.city.