The Offer

We Offer a practical, eco-friendly alternative to to nylon shopping bags. A vertically integrated artisan support platform (prodcution, branding, distribution). Retail and institutional supply partnerships. Media driven advocacy that shapes consumer behaviour, A scalablle business Model where revenue growth increases environmental impact.

Purpose

To reduce environmental flooding caused by nylon waste while creating sustainable income opportunities for local reed basket makers. The purpose is to align environmental sustainability with economic empowerment, using market demand as the bridge between both challenges.

Ambition

To make reusable reed baskets the default shopping carrier across Lagos and eventually across Nigeria, transforming a traditional craft into a scalable, climate resilient economic movement. The long term ambition is to normalize sustainable consumer behavior while building a structured, commercially viable ecosystem for artisans.

The Problem

Recurring flooding in Lagos is worsened by nylon waste clogging drainage systems. Heavy reliance on single use plastic shopping bags continues to drive environmental degradation.

Our Baskets

Our Impact

This is not just a product, it is a structured ecosystem where economic growth
becomes the engine for environmental change

Protecting the Environment

We are reducing flooding caused by nylon waste, while creating sustainable income for local reed basket makers, aligning environmental sustainability with economic empowerment through market demand.

Empowering Communities

We are currently working with a community of 12 basket makers, beginning with 2 artisans in a pilot phase, building a sustainable value chain that replaces nylon with biodegradable alternatives.

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The Movement

Lagos has banned thin nylon bags.
Make the switch today with a beautiful, handcrafted reed basket.

Browse Our Collection

Our Blogs

Latest News

  • We Are More Connected than We Think

    Meet Mr Abdulazeez, the Liaison Officer @REED Initiative. Mr Abdulazeez speaks 4 languages fluently, and speaks another 2 Nigerian languages passably.He is fluent in: Arabic, Hausa, Fulani and English. He speaks Yoruba and Edo passably, not to mention Nigerian pidgin. At REED Initiative, we as a social venture, dream of a Lagos where reusable reed baskets MADE BY LOCAL WEAVERS,…

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  • Year after year Lagos shuts down in June July & August

    There’s always something to blame – too much rain, coastal road, global warming; when sometimes, a simple shift in behavior can make a huge difference. The House Committee on Environment from the Lagos State House of Assembly, led by its Chairman, Honourable Shabi Rasheed Adekola, agrees. On a recent courtesy call, they gave their nod in support of our goal…

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  • Plastic Waste and the Future of Lagos

    To live in Lagos State is to love her. Yet, in Africa’s fastest-growing megacity, the convenience of plastic has become an environmental curse. With a population exceeding 20 million, Lagos generates an estimated 13,000–15,000 tonnes of solid waste daily, and plastic accounts for roughly 15 percent of that volume. Annual plastic waste generation is about 870,000 tonnes — a staggering…

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