Reduce Fire Deaths in Nigeria's Dense Urban Settlements

Fires in Balogun Market, in informal settlements in Lagos, in timber markets in Port Harcourt — they are catastrophically common and predictably devastating. The causes are known: overcrowded electrical connections, illegal fuel storage, no early detection, no suppression equipment, and emergency response times of 40 to 60 minutes due to access roads blocked by street trading. Each of these factors is reduceable with the right design. Your challenge is to design a community fire safety system for one type of dense Nigerian urban environment (open market, informal residential settlement, or mixed commercial-residential strip). The system must include early smoke and heat detection, an alert protocol that reaches community members and fire services simultaneously, accessible fire suppression equipment, and a community training programme. Total cost per metre of coverage must be below ₦2,000. Submit a design document (max 12 pages) including: the early detection technology, alert architecture, suppression equipment design for the specific environment, community training model, maintenance plan, cost per metre of coverage, and a plan to cover 10 high-risk sites in two cities within 18 months. Judging criteria: 40% early detection and alert design for the specific environment, 30% suppression equipment design, 20% community training model, 10% cost and scale plan.