Ikeja, town, capital of Lagos state, southwestern Nigeria. It lies 10.5 miles (17 km) northwest of Lagos city. Originally settled by the Yoruba people, the locality was raided for slaves until the mid-19th century. Early in the 20th century it became an agricultural hinterland for Lagos; kola nuts were first grown in Nigeria in this area. The opening of the Lagos-Ibadan railway in 1901 and the growth of Lagos as a port transformed Ikeja into a residential and industrial suburb of that city. In the mid-1960s an industrial estate was established, and in 1976 Ikeja became the capital of Lagos state.
The town’s industrial estate contains cotton textile plants that are among Nigeria’s largest, and there is also a wool textile plant. Other factories in Ikeja manufacture footwear, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, plastics, paper and cork products, ceramics, paints, matches, and lighting products. There are a number of food processing plants and a large brewery in the town. Heavy industries in and around Ikeja include steel products, trailer-truck tanks, wire, and aluminum. Several publishers and printers and import-export businesses are also centered at Ikeja.
The Federal Institute of Industrial Research (1955) and a community nursing school are located in the town. The Lagos state radio broadcasting service has its headquarters in Ikeja. A housing project has been built in the town to help ease the overcrowding problems of Lagos. Murtala Mohammed International Airport, serving Lagos, is located in Ikeja. Pop. (2016 est.) local government area, 437,400.