As dusk settles over Lagos, the air thickens with the aroma of roasted beef and ground pepper. On a busy corner in Yaba, Ibrahim Musa fans glowing coals beneath rows of glistening skewers. “Business is good when the smoke rises straight,” he says, half-smiling as customers queue for their share of Suya, Nigeria’s most democratic meal.
But behind this roadside theatre lies a billion-naira economy, one that feeds millions, employs thousands, yet remains largely invisible to formal markets. From cattle herders in Sokoto to Suya vendors in Port
