The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Hannah Ojo

  • INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (2)

    INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (2)

    • Why contaminated ‘Pure Water’ abounds in Lagos

    In this concluding part of our investigative story on the conditions of different brands of sachet water sold to unsuspecting consumers in Lagos as ‘pure’, HANNAH OJO reports on the result of the second batch of 15 laboratory- tested samples randomly selected in the five divisions of Lagos. With six of the samples revealing acidic content beyond the World Health Organisation (WHO) standards, environmental factors and acute water shortage appears to be prime reasons for the contamination of water sources in the state.

    Lagos residents who drink ‘pure water’ would have to be more discerning in their choice as six out of another set of 15 laboratory- tested sachet water revealed high acidic content. The pH level of the six acidic water ranged from 4.64 to 6.22, falling below the WHO minimum requirement of 6.50 for potable water. Last week, The Nation had published results from the first 15 samples out of which nine samples recorded the presence of contaminants such as coliform, microbial count, acidity and pathogenic bacteria.

    The test also revealed LASPOTECH water has a slightly low pH at 6.22, with the analyst recommending treatment. The samples were selected in the month of August.

    Read also: This is Lagos…City of aquatic splendour, dry taps

    The result of the second batch brings to 15 the number of contaminated brands out of the 30 samples taken to the laboratory. The water samples, selected between May and August were contracted to the University of Lagos Consult Limited for a laboratory test. The physical, chemical and microbiological characteristics of each sample were examined.

    A registered public analyst and chartered chemist from the Chemistry Department of the University of Lagos issued an analyst’s certificate on each sample, in accordance with the Institute of Public Analysts of Nigeria (IPAN). The brands were coded at the time they were tested in order to conceal their brand names.

    Prof. Osibogun

    A Consultant Public Health Physician/Epidemiologist, Prof Akin Osibogun, in an interview with The Nation, said the main danger from low pH of water (acidity) is that such water becomes corrosive and dissolves metal pipings, which may lead to high levels of metals in the consumed water, in addition to the economic costs.

    “High pH of water, on the other hand, renders chlorination less effective and therefore increases the likelihood that bacterial agents of the disease may persist in such water and when consumed, may result in diarrhoeal diseases,” Prof Osibogun added.

    He also said that some chemical contaminants may have acute or relatively immediate toxic effects, while other chemicals may have long term carcinogenic effects.

    “There are over 10,000 chemicals now being used in industries and careless disposal of industrial wastes is one source of pollution of water sources,” he said.

    His views were corroborated by a medical practitioner, Dr Shola Oguntona, who explained that when the pH of water is less than 7, it can be considered acidic.

    Oguntona, formerly of the Department of Medical Biochemistry, Lagos State University College of Medicine, averred that although there are not enough scientific data to conclude that acidic water has a direct impact on health, he affirmed that there might be indirect effects causing kidney and cardiovascular diseases.


    “Accumulation of lead in children can occur faster and this can affect their growth and memory. Other effects of water contaminated by metals can be stomach upset, vomiting, dehydration from vomiting and kidney diseases,” he told The Nation.

    Acidic Sachet Water in Lagos; long time coming

    The prevalence of acidic contents in some Lagos sachet water appears not to have been a sudden occurrence. Five years ago, a team of researchers at the Lagos State University College of Medicine carried out a study on contamination of sachet water produced within the industrial area of Ikeja in Lagos. Six sachet water samples were selected. The study, led by Dr Shola Ogunbona, showed that all the sachet water samples were acidic. It also showed high level of heavy metals (Chromium, lead, and zinc) which would accumulate in the body after long term consumption. Two other samples showed high level of chloride which was traced to industrial activities in this region where the water was produced.

    Read also: INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (1)

    Human cost of sketchy sachet water

    In July 23 this year, a cholera outbreak was announced in the city of Lagos. At least two persons were reported dead while 25 others were said to be quarantined. Another report recorded six casualties in Shomolu among whom was a five-year-old Hannah Obi, an 18- year-old simply identified as Clement and a 66 –year- old woman, Risikat Okubena Majolagbe. In a space of one month, there were 26 cases and six deaths, according to records obtained from a government official, who pleaded anonymity.

    A woman smiles as she gulps down a sachet water; oblivious to the potential contaminants therein

    Also, data The Nation exclusively obtained from the Lagos State Ministry of Health revealed places like Epe, Ijede, Harvey Road (Yaba) and Shomolu as hot spots for cholera between 2014-2015. However, there are usually many unreported cases of deaths and illnesses arising from water- borne diseases as majority of Lagos residents are cut off from potable water supply.

    The Lagos State Water Corporation only produces 215 million gallons of water per day for a population of 24 million people, leaving a deficit of over 500 million gallons per day.

    The sketchy alternative citizens are faced with in the quest for potable water has resulted in the death of children. Most grievous was the death of 25 children from Otodo Gbame, a slum in the Ikate Eti Osa Local Government Area in February 2016. The children died after drinking the community’s pathogen-infected water.

    Again, in March 2017 this year, there was another ‘water tragedy’ at Queens College, a government secondary school in the Yaba area of Lagos where three students died and scores of others were hospitalised as a result of a gastroenteritis epidemic contracted through contaminated water sources within the school environment.

    Unenviable romance with wastes, effluents

    With 13, 000 metric tonnes of waste generated in the state per day, Lagos has always had an unenviable romance with waste. Sadly, there are also many industries who flout environment rules by discharging untreated effluents into waste water. This invariably has affected the quality of water aquifers in the state, leading to contamination from source in most cases.

    A sachet water treatment plant in Lagos

    A geologist, Mr Olawale Alo, stated that while earth materials on the surface of water are supposed to act as filters; that may not be the case with Lagos, going by its high population density and the amount of generated wastes which may infiltrate into the sub-surface.

    He counseled; “With Lagos being a coastal city, toxic materials produced from waste can easily infiltrate down, thereby polluting the water aquifers. The shallower water is more susceptible to pollution. Even the deep aquifers can have the issue of marine incursion such that the water would be salty. What that means is that if people must drill boreholes, it is better to do a geo-physical survey so that the deeper aquifers are targeted.”

    The Lagos State Water Corporation is responsible for water supply across the state. Bedeviled by continuous population increase, failed public-private partnerships, inadequate budgetary allocation, poor labour practices and unstable power supply, the corporation falls short, hence leading to indiscriminate drilling of boreholes in the state. The indiscriminate drilling can send vibrations down into the soft surface of the earth, thereby paving way for environmental disasters.

    Eyewitness accounts

    Following the publication of the first part of this report two weeks ago, two Lagos residents reached out to the reporter to report cases of faulty water sachet samples and indiscreet packaging sighted in Lagos. Seye Joseph had no iota of doubt on August 21 when he gulped down the content of a sachet of pure water he bought from a location in Ikeja.

    He said: “I took the water in my mouth but could not swallow it. The liquid had an abhorrent taste and I quickly spat it out. I later called the number on the sachet water and all they offered were apologies. I shuddered on the ills the bad water would have caused people because this same company also produces bottled water.”

    The Gravel Truck

    Another response came from Mr Femi Salawu, a communications specialist who photographed an image where a gravel truck was loaded with bags of sachet water with a man lying over them.

    The water did not only stand the risk of being contaminated through exposure to the sun but also from the body fluids of the person who made a bed space on top of the pile.

    Mr Salawu, who captured the image, tweeted at the reporter’s handle with the caption: “From earth moving vehicle to a sachet water carrying “motor”.

    Is water still life?” The image was captured at 8:51 am on 22 August with the twitter handle @citizen_gavel.


    It has been said that when sachet water is exposed to the sun and other harsh elements from the environment, it stands the risk of exposure to carcinogenic agents. According to Prof Oluwole Adedeji, a consultant with the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, this happens when the polythene bag used to package the water is of low quality whilst being exposed to sunlight or stored under an unwholesome condition.

    “Most of these bags have pores. They have holes which may not be visible to the human eye, which allow some elements in the environment to diffuse gradually into the water. The chemicals can be very carcinogenic,” Prof Adedeji intoned as he connects poorly packaged sachet water with cancer and other terminal illnesses associated with the lungs, liver and the heart.

    Mr Oluwole Toye explaining how sachet water is produced

    Advising on best practices, Mr Oluwole Toye, the Vice President of the Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology, who took the reporter through various purifying process of producing potable sachet water, said citizens have a responsibility to report sachet water producers that are not doing the right thing.

    He said: “Some people are actually using water from the well while others use public water systems without purification. I am sure NAFDAC is also worried about the proliferation of sachet water companies.

    What NAFDAC needs to do is to ensure effective control. NAFDAC is a corporate member of our institute, so we are always engaging them on how we can be of assistance.”

    Safety valves

    As a safety measure, citizens can boil their water and allow it to cool before drinking, The Nation learned. “Whenever one is unsure of one’s water source, it is better to boil. However, this takes care of only the biological agents that could cause disease. If you have also sunk a borehole in your premises, it will be useful to subject samples of the water to biological and chemical analysis. There are different types of filters in the market to address different iron pollutants,” Osibogun, advised.

    Our stories, by faulted sachet water producers, ATWAP President

    Aminat Akanji, the manager of Fizco water, one of the water samples indicted by the laboratory report, told The Nation that executive members of the Association of Table Water Producers (ATWAP) came to the factory to take samples of its water for laboratory test, wondering what could have gone wrong while she was away on maternity leave.

    She said: “I called for treatment and the pH level was checked as well. I don’t know what happened with the samples reported in the newspaper. I was away on maternity leave but things are okay now. We have called in a chemist to maintain the treatment plant and things have been certified okay,” she said.

    When his reaction was sought on the acidic content of his sachet water, the producer of Two Ways Water, Mr Gafaru Wahud, said that no one had complained about the brand.

    NAFDAC inspected our factory before we got registered and we have been maintaining the standards. We always back-flush our cylinder and change the filters from time to time.

    Asked how often public analysts get to test the water, Wahud said the water factory, which sources its water from a borehole, had just opened. So, tests had not been conducted.

    On his part, the Public Relations Officer of the Lagos State Polytechnic, the producers of LASPOTECH Water, Mr. Lanrewaju Kuye, said the school would not produce substandard water, considering that it produces for the consumption of both the students of the institution and members of the public.

    “Regarding the issue (low pH), I will ask the consultant in charge of our water factory to cross-check. If the result is true, it will be corrected immediately.”

    Also, Mr Afolabi Oluwaseyi, the producer of Jim Dee Water, which recorded a pH level of 5.65 against the WHO’s minimum standard of 6.50, discountenanced the test result obtained by The Nation.
    “We are doing our renewal with NAFDAC. We have taken samples to the lab, though we have not collected the result. If there is any issue with the pH, we would have been alerted.”

    Oluwaseyi, however, promised that the water treatment plant would be recharged to boast its pH if per chance the hydrolyte stopped working.

    Sem-Sem Water, produced in Epe, also recorded a case of low pH pegged at 6.21. Mariam Morafa, the production manager of the water factory, said a water engineer would be called to access the treatment plant.

    “This is the first complaint we have received. We would do something about it. We are supposed to do the water treatment every three months,” Morafa said, adding that the factory started production less than a year ago.

    Med Oaeses sachet water sample produced in Ikeja Military cantonment also tested positive to high acidic content at 4.64. When The Nation visited the premises on Friday, workers at the plant declined to comment as the manager was said not to be available.

    Explaining why there is proliferation of substandard sachet water brands in Lagos and other parts of the country, the President of the Association of Table Water Producers (ATWAP), Dame Clementina Ativie, attributed the problem to the increasingly high cost of doing business on account of which some producers are trying to cut cost by using substandard products.

    One of the problems, she said, is excessive taxation. “Too much of taxes on the industry by various government agencies results in the use of cheap production materials by some producers to meet up with government tax demands,” she said.

    She also fingered loopholes in the regulatory and supervisory mechanisms of government as part of the problem.

    Dame Ativie said: “If the industry is currently being supervised by NAFDAC, SON, Ministry of Health, Lagos Water Regulatory Council (LSWRC), and these problems of contamination still manifest, then it means there is a missing gap somewhere. ATWAP should, therefore, be authorized by the government to regulate and supervise the industry in conjunction with NAFDAC”.

    She also tasked government to put an end to the indiscriminate sitting of water factories. “A number of factories should be determined in each geographical location. Boreholes in high-density areas should be regulated due to waste water, soak-aways and the volume of contaminants in groundwater in such locations,” she said.

    On measures the association is taking to combat counterfeited brands of sachet water, she said: “We are presently working on coded symbol and number to differentiate our water from any sachet of water or bottled water in circulation. That would launch very soon”.

    As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to pursue availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all; it appears dry tapes and unwholesome production of an alternative source of potable water are prime factors exposing citizens to water-borne diseases.

    Reporting for this story was supported by Code for Africa’s impactAFRICA fund and the Bill & Melinda Gate Foundation.

  • Abandoned health centres: Imo communities battle needless diseases, pains

    Abandoned health centres: Imo communities battle needless diseases, pains

    For residents of Ikpeze and Ndianiche Uno communities in the Ideato federal constituency of Imo State, their anticipated dividends of democracy has been turned into a forlorn hope.

    Two primary health care centres which ought to alleviate the health crisis in both communities by providing a basic, affordable and accessible health care are in a state of disrepair.

    The development has led to anguish for members of the community, who often have to go as far as Orlu and Owerri to access medical care. The trip is a burden to the less privileged and pregnant women in both communities.  Many people have died from travelling long distances for medical care, The Nation learnt.

    “The situation is hard for pregnant women. Many deliver babies on the road and they end up with complications. We have recorded cases of pregnant women who died while trying to birth babies because they didn’t get medical attention on time. We have a serious problem here, our people are suffering”,  Mrs. Alice Okafor, the woman leader of the community lamented.

     

    Overtaken by weeds and thistles

    In Ndianiche Uno, weeds and thistles have taken over the bungalow supposedly commissioned to be the site of a model primary health centre. Conceived as a constituency project attracted by Bar Patricia Udogu, a former house of rep member who represented the Ideato federal constituency from 2003 to 2007, the building is in a colossal state of abandonment.  Giant grasses have overgrown the site so much that one would need to stand on a pedestal to peep into the shattered state of the bungalow.

    Abandoned since 2008, the modest structure has faded into an unpleasant sight of taxpayers money put to waste. The wood used to support the roofing of the house is already falling apart. The abandoned Ndianiche Uno health centre in its present state has been turned into a habitation for rodents and reptiles.

    The sponsor of the project, Hon Patricia Ndogu who spoke with The Nation from London, where she is now based, said the project, which she started, was expected to have been completed by her successor.

    “As at 2008 when I was out of the national assembly, I made efforts and got it to the point it was but since the person that came after me was from another local government, he was not interested in following it up until the project was stopped by the national assembly.”

    Dismissing the claim that the project was not completed because the contractor handling the construction was not paid, she held that the contractors were not supposed to be paid up front.

    “If I was there, I would have moved for it to be finished but if you are not there (in power), your interest is no longer protected. By the time we are talking about, I was in England doing my masters project,” the ex-PDP lawmaker intoned.

    Asked for the amount which completed the project, Udogu, who also represented Nigeria in the Pan African Parliament in South Africa, added that it was not in her jurisdiction to follow up with the contractor.

    “I just got it as my constituency project and that was the way to go about it then. You don’t know what the budget is; you don’t even follow up with who the contractor is. The most important thing is to have it in the budget and the appropriate ministry would take care of it. All the projects I attracted, I didn’t know the contractor that handled them, I only went for the commissioning,” she said.

     

    Ikpeze: Completed but not functional

    In Ikpeze, another community in Ideato, a N20 million constituency project is about to go down the drain.

    The project, a primary health centre completed in 2016, has not been open to access by residents of the community.  The contractor who handled the execution of the projected was alleged to have locked the facility up due to outstanding accumulated debts.   The modest size building painted in cream and green stands solitary in an expanse of land surrounded by weeds and bushes. The signage showed the project was constructed in 2010.  As at the time of going to press, the structure has not been functional, thereby depriving members of the community access to a needed lifeline.

    When reached by phone about the non-functional state of the health centre, Hon Mbadiwe  Dr Eddie Mbadiwe, the former law maker who attracted the project heaped the blame of the non-functional state of the health centre on the Primary Health Care Development Agency.

    “When I was in the National Assembly, I tried to get them to furnish the building but they did not come.  I am trying to get MTN Foundation to take it as one of their projects. I even wrote a letter to the chairman of the senate committee on health asking him to put it as one of his projects because it so sad when you finish a project and people are not using it. The most unfortunate part is that the current rep member is not interested.”

    Asked if he had reached out to the present house rep member, he said: “He knows the project is there. People should put pressure on him; I don’t want to appear to be forcing him.  Many people never did their projects but at least we got this one finished. All it requires now is furnishing.”

    On the actual amount the project gulped, Mbadiwe feigned ignorance, saying the contract for the health centre was awarded by the Primary Health Board Development Agency. However, BudgIT, a civic organization, under its Tracka project, an initiative which enables people to track and give feedback on public projects in their communities, stated in a tweet that the construction of the health centre in Ikpeze in Ideato North federal constituency cost tax payers N20 million. The Tracka team also visited the site on the 27 June this year to examine the health facility but observed that it was under lock and key.

     

    Citizens react…

    The traditional ruler of the community, HRH Dr Eze Kanu, also bemoaned the state of the uncompleted health centres, blaming government for not failing to alleviate the plight of his people.

    “The one at Ikpeze has been completed but it is not functional. Functional in the sense that it is just the building and then the contractor locked the place up and has gone away with the keys.  That of Ndianiche is completely abandoned. It has grown with bush. Incidentally, those that attracted the projects have served their terms.   The present person has not been of any help. He has not done anything as far as the community he represents is concerned”, the monarch intoned bitterly.

    Reacting to how the non- implementation of the project has affected the health of people in the community, the monarch explained; “We have recorded deaths of many people who died in the course of travelling many miles for health care.  Most times, when they travel far for health care, they pay through their nose. If these two health centres are functional, then we would be relieved”.

    Also, the chairman of the ward development committee for Ideato north local government area, Mr Nwakanma Azubuike, told The Nation that both projects may have been suspended owing to non-completion of payment to the contractors. He also spoke of the effort made to reach the Primary Health Care Development Agency which has not yielded fruit.

    “When I called the agency, I was told the model health centre in Ikpeze was in the making.  When I called at another time, they said the minister of health was changed so they are looking at the new minister to know what they can do.  As for the one at Ndianiche Uno, I cannot say specifically, the reason why the project has been abandoned.  We go as far as Orlu and Owerri to access healthcare. There is no health facility here and our people are suffering,” Azubuike explained.

    On a yearly basis, law makers carry out interventionist projects in their respective communities. These constituency projects are often smeared in allegations of corruption. Many of these projects across the country lie in despair even after billions of naira have been appropriated for their completion. In the 2016 budget, N100 billion was voted for constituency projects for the 360 members of the House of Representatives and 109 senators.  As is the case with the health centres at Ikpeze and Ndianiche Uno, many often do not see the light of the day.

    Earlier this year, President Muhammadu Buhari flagged off the revitalization of 10, 000 Primary Health Care (PHC) Centres nationwide. The president emphasized that the programme would focus on the poor, especially women and children under 5 years in the rural areas of the country. For children and women in Ikpeze and Ndianiche Uno, a revitalised health care system in their communities is a miracle waiting to happen. It will no doubt be of great relief to their aching hearts and empty pockets.

    • Reporting done as part of the 2017 BudgIT Media Fellowship
  • INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (1)

    INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (1)

    • Lagosians risk death by instalments as laboratory tests reveal poisonous contents paraded as pure water

    In this first of a two-part series, HANNAH OJO reports the result of the first 15 laboratory-tested sachet water samples randomly selected in the five divisions of Lagos. From the presence of pathogenic bacteria to coliform, high microbial levels, acidity and objectionable odour, the hygiene and safety status of many of the brands of ‘pure water’ consumed by the majority of Lagosians are questionable.

    Lagosians may be killing themselves in instalment through the sachet water they drink, an investigation by The Nation has revealed. For three months, 30 sachet water brands popularly known as ‘pure water’ were randomly selected in the five divisions of Lagos. A laboratory test contracted to the University of Lagos Consult Limited examined the physical, chemical and microbiological characteristics of each sample, which were coded to conceal their brand names. A registered public analyst and chartered chemist from the University of Lagos’s chemistry department issued an analyst’s certificate on each sample, in accordance with the Institute of Public Analysts of Nigeria (IPAN). The test ran from the month of May to August.

    [jwplayer CsamDW7y]

    Read also: This is Lagos…City of aquatic splendour, dry taps

    Out of the first batch of 15 sachet water samples analysed, only six met the recommended World Health Organisation (WHO) standard on potable water. The other nine showed a high level of contaminants ranging from the presence of pathogenic bacteria and faecal coliform to high microbial levels, objectionable odour and low pH (acidity), which falls short of the minimum WHO pH parameter of 6.50.

    The names of the tested sachet water are Maja Water, Makus Water, Unilag Water, Haars Premium Water, Skord Water, Le Harmonious Water, David’s Key, Fizco Water, Dis Day Water, Clock Water, Austin Water, Vic Water, Ray Queen Water,  Troven Water and Vida water.

    Interpreting the health implications of the contaminants found in the tested water samples, a professor of Chemical Pathology at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Prof Oluwole Adedeji, stated that low pH in water represents acidity.

    “pH is the concentration of hydrogen iron which represents acidity. The neutral pH is seven. Anything below seven is acidic. Anything above seven is basic and denotes alkalinity,” he said.

    The consultant also described odour as a product of metabolism which shows some form of decay with grave implications for the human body if ingested through contaminated water.

    Read also: INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (2)

    Asked about the health implications of coliforms and other forms of pathogenic bacteria, he offered that the coliform count in potable water should not go beyond a certain percentage.

    “Our intestines have what is called the resident coliform. But when immunity is reduced, they become a problem. Adding more from outside means exposing the body to higher risks of toxic effects, especially when a person is stressed,” he said.

    At risk of diseases and terminal illnesses

    A wheelbarrow pusher, hawking bags of sachet water in Lagos

    Beyond water borne diseases such as typhoid, diarrhoea, cholera and hepatitis, drinking contaminated packaged water can also expose the body to carcinogenic agents, The Nation learnt. This happens when the polythene bag used to package the water is of low quality whilst being exposed to sunlight or stored in an unwholesome condition.

    Findings revealed that the drive for-profit often makes many sachet water manufacturers patronise low-quality polyethene bags, which causes dissolution of chemical into the water.

    “Most of these bags have pores. They have holes which may not be visible to the human eye, which allow some elements in the environment to diffuse gradually into the water. The chemicals can be very carcinogenic,” Prof Adedeji intoned as he connects poorly packaged sachet water with cancer and other terminal illnesses associated with the lungs, liver and the heart.

    With the acute water shortage in Lagos owing to the inability of the state’s Water Corporation to supply potable water to the majority of residents, there is a high reliance on sachet water as a means of potable drinking water by over 70 per cent of the citizens.

    In a twitter poll conducted by the reporter on potable drinking water source for Lagosians, 44 per cent of respondents chose sachet water as their source of potable water while 39 per cent chose boreholes. Another 12 per cent voted bottled water and the lowest vote stands at 6 per cent, representing those who source potable water from the Lagos State Water Corporation.

    Majority of sachet water producers interviewed by The Nation source their water from boreholes. Although there are strident measures laid down by regulatory agencies such as the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), and the Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission; enforcement to these standards is not often adhered to, findings have revealed.

    Kabir Ahmed, the chairman of the Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission, an agency responsible for regulating water supply and wastewater management, told The Nation that indiscriminate sinking of boreholes and wells have negatively impacted on the quality of ground water in Lagos.

    Ahmed said: “Underground, we have four aquifers of water. As we speak, the topmost aquifer has been polluted by human activities. As recent as 25 years ago, we used to fetch water from shallow wells in Lagos to drink. Now, water from that depth of 0-12m is not drinkable because it is practically impure.”

    Lamenting the fact that many borehole drillers in the state use sub standard equipment which drips oil into the underground water, Ahmed further stated that sinking of soak-away and pit latrines close to a water source is responsible for the presence of coliform in some water sources across the state.

     

    Cheap death channel

    At N10 per sachet and N150 for 20 pieces, ‘pure’ water in Lagos appears a cheaper alternative to bottled water. A 75 cl bottled water sells between N50 and N100, depending on the brand. However, low costing sachet water might be a bait to a cheap death channel.

    Data exclusively obtained by The Nation from the Lagos State Ministry of Health, showing the prevalence of water-borne diseases such as diarrhea, typhoid and cholera in the 25 general hospitals in Lagos, revealed higher rates of water-borne diseases in areas of the state faced with the most pressing cases of inadequate Water Hygiene and Sanitation (WASH) facilities. Such areas include Badagry, Ikorodu, Epe and Orile Agege.

    In 2014, General Hospital Orile Agege recorded a total of 1,690 cases of typhoid fever and 3,213 cases of diarrhoea. The Ijede Health Centre recorded the highest cases of cholera with 48, followed by General Hospital Epe with 15 cases. Also, in the year under review, The Massey Children Hospital also recorded 2,612 cases of diarrhoea while the General Hospital, Epe treated 893 patients out of a total diarrhoea prevalence rate of 12,413 in 2014.

    Diarrhoea prevalence rate in Nigeria, put at 18.8 per cent, is one of the worst in sub-Sahara Africa.

    Although data from 2015 and 2016 showed a slight reduction in the prevalence of water borne diseases in the state, local government areas such as Ikorodu, Epe and Badagry recorded highest prevalence rates.

    The Orile Agege area, which follows closely, is one of the most densely populated urban slums in Lagos. Also, areas such as Epe and Badagry are urban isolated bubbles in Lagos where manufacturing of counterfeited sachet water is common. While the results of the tests of the sachet water samples selected in Ikorodu recorded cases of contamination with acidity, those of Epe and Badagry are being awaited and would be published in the second series of this report next Saturday.

    Shocking source of unhealthy sachet water

    Poster of “best water practices” at the entrance of UNILAG water factory

    The most shocking results of the scientifically tested sachet water samples were the one produced by UNILAG, which recorded the presence of coliform and high microbial load on two separate occasions. On May 15, our reporter purchased three sachets of UNILAG’s water at the Iya Ibeji store located at the campus shuttle park. Another set of samples of sachet water purchased from the same outlet on August 1 and subjected to laboratory test showed the presence of high microbial loads, with the analyst recommending that the water should be treated to make it potable.

    Confronted with the result, officials of the university debunked the claim, saying the tested water samples selected could be counterfeited products smuggled into the campus illegally.

    The University’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Toyin Adebule, told our correspondent that the university had been having a running battle with fake sachet water producers who counterfeited the university’s brand.

    Adebule said: “Our Department of Chemistry on a weekly basis conducts quality assurance test on UNILAG water. There is fake UNILAG water around, and the authority is clamping down on the perpetrators.”

    The Nation paid a visit to the UNILAG factory penultimate Wednesday. At the door post, a banner displaying good water storage practices greets visitors.

    The UNILAG water factory which started in 1995 was privatised recently and is now managed by the University of Lagos Holding Company Limited.

    Speaking with our correspondent, the General Manager of UNILAG Ventures, Mrs Oyewunmi Onanuga said: “We challenge anyone with claims to contamination of our water to buy directly from our factory and subject it to laboratory tests. Only last year, we had a case of adulterated UNILAG water counterfeited by some people.

    “We also emphasise to retailers that storage condition is important. If the water is left under the sun, on the bare floor or stored for a period exceeding validity, then there could be the possibility of contamination.”

    Another ironic twist also occurred with Troven Water, a sachet water brand sourced from the central cafeteria of the Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja. Produced by Treasured Rocks Ventures, Troven Water, which also has an LWRC registration number, recorded a low pH of 6.20.

    Damming verdict…pathogenic Faecal Coliform

    The laboratory sample which recorded the most damning verdict was Fizco Water, produced by Akanji Ola and Sons, located in Mushin, a densely populated suburb of Lagos. A very popular brand in the area, the sample was selected at an open market in Mushin and taken to the lab on May 17. When the physical, chemical and microbiological characteristics were analysed, it showed the presence of pathogenic bacteria totalling 1.50x 103, exceeding the WHO limits of 1.0×101 in threefold. Also, the total coliform count was 3.0×101, a far cry from the WHO recommended 0.00 limits. The acidity was also high at a record 5.60 against the WHO recommended a maximum of 6.50. Fizco Water is registered with NAFDAC registration number B1-5761L.

    According to a study by the African Journal of Food Science and Technology, Faecal coliforms are bacteria found in the faecal material of humans and warm blooded animals. Diseases such as typhoid fever, hepatitis, gastroenteritis, dysentery and ear infections can be contracted from waters with a high faecal coliform count, the study further revealed. Faecal coliform bacteria can come from surface water through improperly treated wastewater.

    Last month, there was an outbreak of diarrhoea in Lagos State where two people died and 25 others were quarantined. The incident occurred in Shomolu, the locale where Ray Queen Water, another brand contaminated with high acidity, was sourced from. Findings show that Shomolu/Bariga is also a hub for counterfeited sachet water.

    NAFDAC investigates, urges proper storage of packaged water

    The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), regulates and controls the manufacture and distribution of food, drugs, chemicals, medical devices and packaged water.

    A summary of the results of the first 15 samples was directed to be submitted to the pharmaco-vigilance arm of the agency. Also, NAFDAC ran a cross check on the registration status of the selected water samples. A particular brand, Vic Pure Water, produced by Kroxxing Ventures in Abule-Egba, was not in the agency’s record of registered sachet water producers, even though the sachet has the registration number C1-4773L boldly printed on it. Another brand, Dis Day Water, was registered as Oniks Water while Austin Water produced in Fatai Atere has an expired registration status.

    NAFDAC’s director of Special Duties, Dr Abubakar Jimoh in a chat with The Nation cited storage and counterfeiting as reasons why packaged water registered by the agency may turn out to be contaminated.

    Dr Jimoh said; “Even if a product is registered but it is stored in bad condition, it will return as poison. Bottled water has a life span of one year and sachet water is two months.

    “Secondly, the fact that a water company carries a NAFDAC registration number does not mean it is registered. We have arrested printers who printed labels for those adulterating fast selling sachet water brands.

    “Then the third layer is where the real owner of the product would be compliant when seeking registration but lower their standards once they get registered.  We are also warning people not to buy packaged water from hawkers because of the exposure to the sun,” he submitted.

    How corruption and multiple taxation affect quality of sachet water

    Nothing gives the indication that Dame Clementina Ativie, the National President of the Association of Table Water Producers (ATWAP), is a forceful woman until she took hold of the microphone to state the grievances of packaged water producers in Lagos at a stakeholders’ meeting on taxation and revenue generation, convened by the state’s Ministry of Finance on August 1.

    She lamented the fact that water producers are vulnerable to tax and revenue collectors from both local government and state levels. The development, she said, is forcing many water producers to relocate to suburbs where there is ease of doing business. She hinted that multiple taxations could be the reason for low-quality sachet water in the state.

    “Consultants and touts are used to threatening us both at the local government and state levels. As I speak, we have over 20 people all going for revenue collection from water producers. More than six agencies alone from the state’s Ministry of Environment, each with an independent letter, with the Lagos state government letter-headed paper.

    “Ninety-nine per cent of the money goes into private pockets because there are no receipts. When government says pay N5,000, the touts will tell you, ‘Give us N2000 and forget the balance.’ The N2,000 is not remitted to the state’s coffers.

    “With the way things are going, those that can continue to pay will start cutting corners on the quality of water,” she said.

    No respite for the poor

    On a hot sunny day in Maryland, Lagos, John Nwordi, a pharmacist carries a fast food branded polyethene bag, heading back to work to have lunch after a hectic morning duty. Asked if he would wash down the food with sachet water, he gave a sharp retort; No!

    Said John; “Gone are those days I drank sachet water. These days, I don’t. Some of the sachet water I have bought in the past had funny outlook and sometimes you’d see substances flying inside the sachet.”

    Not far away, a teenager and aspiring rapper, Micheal Odion, flags down a sachet water Hawker. Asked if he’s not afraid of contamination, his response, “The blood of Jesus covers me!”

    Odion’s response resonates with the thought of many Lagosians who hope for a spiritual force that will cover them from diseases after drinking sachet water. A purified water source is beyond the purchasing power of many Lagos residents.

     

    • Reporting for this story was supported by Code for Africa’s impactAFRICA fund and the Bill & Melinda Gate Foundation.
  • Inside the world of traditional BIRTH attendants

    Inside the world of traditional BIRTH attendants

    • Why pregnant women are shunning hospitals for their centres
    • Our encounters with HIV-positive moms

    In 2015, 342 of them helped birth 14,536 babies. In 2014, 809 of them attended to 23,229 deliveries, according to data from the Partnership for Transforming Health System 11 (PATHS2). In this report, HANNAH OJO writes on how trained Traditional Birth Attendants are reducing maternal and child mortality in Lagos State.

    To arrive at Number 19, Lamidi Jemni Street in Egan-Igando, a community in the remote part of Lagos, one would need to meander through a labyrinth of swampy roads steeped in gallops. When it rains, access to the community is best described as a motorist’s nightmare and a bike rider’s burden.

    The unpainted structure is a modest bungalow divided into three compartments: the first part is residential; the second a church while the third is a small space built with a wooden cabin. The cabin serves as a reception leading to another paved structure housing a labour room and a maternity ward containing three new maternity beds.

    In another part of the compound with walls covered in algae, a construction is underway. When completed, the building would be a new clinic furnished with more toilets and a larger consultancy room. Welcome to the premises of God is Wise, a faith-based community birth attendant clinic.

    Fifty-three-year-old Omowunmi Mary Olaoyenikan, a registered member of the Lagos State Traditional Medicine Board, manages the facility. Since she got trained by a church mission in the year 2000 to practise as a traditional birth attendant, she has taken delivery of more than 1000 babies.

    “This work is a calling. You can’t just wake up and rush into it. Some pregnancies don’t show signs of complications until the time for delivery. It is a charity work. Many times, I have to cater for them with my resources,” she said, sitting across the reporter in the cabin which serves as reception.

    A 14-inch box television sits atop a wooden shelf and walls in the cabin are plastered with posters of babies and pregnant women. In a corner of the wall hangs a calendar with the picture of the late Joseph Ayo Babalola, the famed founder of the Christ Apostolic Church.

    Encounters with HIV-positive mothers

    Many pregnant women often patronise the centre for “delivery miracles” without subjecting themselves to strident medical screening, Olaoyenikan said. Some pregnant women who have had caesarean sections in their first and second pregnancies also throng the centre hoping for a miracle that could make them birth babies without going under the knife. (Medically, anyone who has undergone a CS twice is usually booked for a third one automatically).

    Olaoyenikan says she refers those women to the general hospital where they can receive comprehensive care.

    “We let them know there are limits to what we can do”, she said, standing up to count the registration cards of patients who have been referred to the general hospital for caesarean sections.

    With a registration card obtained for N500, the women are given a form which they take to the community health centre to conduct an antenatal screening which consists of several tests that pregnant women undergo for assessment of their overall health.

    The result of the tests would also determine where they would deliver their babies: at the community birth attendants’ or at the general hospital in Igando.

    “I take the time to check them up even after they’ve been referred to the general hospital. Some who are HIV-positive would run back here hoping for a miracle, but I encourage them to go back to their medication. In the end, they give birth to strong, healthy babies who are HIV-free thereafter.

    “During pregnancy, some still insist that I follow them to queue for their retroviral drugs, while maintaining, for reasons best known to them, that their husbands should not be aware of their status. Women in this part of the world need encouragement to birth healthy babies,” she submitted, heaving a sigh.

    Recently, figures from the Lagos State AIDS Control Agency show that 1,702 pregnant women tested positive to HIV in the last one year. The state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr Jide Idris, who reeled out the statistics, added that 1,143 babies who had been exposed to HIV were also placed on prophylaxis.

    In order to enhance prevention and behavioural change, the state government, through the Traditional Medicine Board, has also engaged in rigorous training for traditional birth attendants, insisting on medical screenings for their intending patients.

    A source at the Traditional Medicine Board, who pleaded anonymity, revealed that plans are underway to train TBAs in the state to manage HIV- positive mothers through pregnancy to delivery. The board, whose mission is “to evolve into an established traditional medicine practice that is standardised, documented and protected,” also sends the TBAs to observe a six-week internship in a general hospital close to them, in order for them to gain practical experience.

    However, the insistence by the TBAs on tests for pregnant women often meets with resistance. Some women cite religion and low economic power as reasons for avoidance. Some of them end up with quack birth attendants, often leading to complications.

    “They are usually vexed when we ask them to go for tests, but they don’t know that we are saving their lives. Some are even aware of their HIV-positive status, but they will come from far distances believing I would not insist on test results,” Olaoyenikan chipped in.

    Unacknowledged heroines

    A traditional birth attendant attending to a patient

    The World Health Organisation defines a traditional birth attendant as a person who assists the mother during childbirth and who initially acquired her skills by delivering babies herself or by working with other TBAs.

    In Lagos, each local government has one state-owned secondary health facility. However, these hospitals are not enough to cater to the teeming population of pregnant women. Neither do they have enough facilities or skilled staff to attend to them. In many cases, pregnant women are often turned away for lack of space.

    Funmilola Biodun had her three children delivered at a TBA clinic. She told The Nation that the stress involved in accessing medical care in general hospitals was the motivating factor.

    “Those women attend to us well. I have referred my other friends to them as well. The three children I delivered here are healthy and in great shape. Their services are convenient and pocket-friendly,” she said.

    Instances like this underscore the efforts of TBAs in the informal health sector. Their presence bridges the gap, especially in communities where the closest health centre is many miles away.

    Training TBAs is part of the efforts geared towards prioritising health care at the grassroots, especially in underserved communities. For those who are registered with the Traditional Medicine’s Board, the recognition by government helps in effective transfer of women in labour to health centres when complications arise.

    This ease of transfer came in handy for Olaoyenikan recently when a pregnant woman with a history of high blood pressure was rushed to her place during delivery. “She initially registered at my clinic but after reading her test result. I sent her back to the general hospital. She was placed on bed rest but she ran from the ward and came to give birth at home because of her husband, who had two other wives, said he didn’t have money to pay. They rushed her to my place when she was convulsing and bleeding. It was the doctors at the General Hospital Igando who saved her,” she recalled.

    Why pregnant women shun hospitals for traditional birth attendants

    Although the Lagos State Government claims to operate a free maternal and child health care programme, findings revealed that various state owned hospitals charge pregnant women for antenatal registration, drugs investigations and delivery.

    While normal delivery is pegged at N35,000 or more in state owned hospitals, caesarian section could go as high as N90,000 or more. However, with traditional birth attendants, delivery is much cheaper, ranging from N5000 to N10, 000. They also have the option of paying in instalments.

    “We are closer to these women and they open up to us on intimate issues affecting them. A TBA would go and visit her patients in their homes, but a nurse cannot do that. Accessibility and psycho social care is another factor which makes our services appealing to ordinary people,” Veronica Tewe, another faith-based traditional birth attendant in Ikorodu told The Nation.

    Perhaps the biggest downside is that there are many unregistered traditional birth attendants who have not been trained by health experts. This has led to a situation where women trying to avoid tests in order to minimise costs end up with quacks, leading to obstructed labour, excessive bleeding and eventual death for some.

    Asked how pregnant women can differentiate registered TBAs from unregistered ones, an official from the Traditional Medicines Board who pleaded anonymity, said: “We instruct registered TBAs in the state to hang their certificates and licences on the walls of their clinics.” She added that crackdowns on unregistered TBAs are usually carried out through periodic monitoring or any time there is information leak from members of the public.

    Also, since some herbal medicine practitioners boast of the ability to use herbs that will expand the pelvis so that pregnant women don’t need to do CS, the promise appeals to most would be mothers. But the practice is forbidden for registered TBAs in the state.

    In Kio-kio, an Ijaw community close to Ikorodo famed for its traditional bone setters, The Nation met an aged woman who simply identified herself as Madam Maria. Her signboard announces her as “Dr Maria Fabor, a traditional gynaecologist specialising on barrenness, late menstruation and women infertility.” In a chat with the reporter, she also boasted of the ability to reset the womb and deliver babies without CS. These skills, she said, were acquired through an apprenticeship with her father.

    In many cases, deliveries with TBAs have been tainted with use of unsterilised tools, unskilled personnel, poor environmental conditions and little or no knowledge of prevention of mother-to-child transmission. With all that the state is committed to doing, the best purveyors of safe birth, it appears, ultimately would be mothers themselves.

    “Pregnant women need to be counselled to love themselves and take their health seriously. They blame us for forcing them to do tests, saying we don’t rely on prayers anymore. But that is a misconception. Some will tell you that in their culture, they don’t withdraw. They won’t consider the fact that you are trying to help them. The government should record jingles to educate them to be registered,” Olaoyenikan said as a final counsel.

    The top causes of maternal mortality in Nigeria, according to a memo on the Lagos State Ministry of Health website includes hemorrhage (23 per cent), infection (11 per cent), obstructed pregnancies (11 per cent), among others. Also, the prevalence of traditional birth attendants at the community level who refused to follow laid down rules.

  • Group partners U.S government to fight corruption

    BudgIT, a civic tech organization committed to raising standards of transparency has partnered with the United States Diplomatic Mission in Nigeria to launch “Report Yourself”, a web-based platform that leverages citizen engagement to fight corruption.

    Developed by BudgIT, the initiative funded by the United States Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, also includes the Religious Leaders Anti-Corruption (RLAC) working group and Nigerian law enforcement agencies.

    Oluseun Onigbinde, lead partner, BudgIT, expressed optimism saying the initiative would not only fight corruption but help Nigerians gained back their lost prestige. Also, Stanley Achonu, Operations Manager at BudgIT, described “Report Yourself” as an opportunity to collaborate with religious leaders to monitor the level of corruption at the grassroots.

    On his part, the  U.S. Chargé d’ Affaires David Young explained that the platform  puts the power to report corruption in the hands of the Nigerian people.

    “I hope that “Report Yourself” starts a new movement in citizen engagement and I hope every Nigerian who is affected by corruption will feel empowered to share their experiences. The tide will turn against the culture of corruption when Nigerians recognize that they must fight as one to stamp out this scourge that has hampered development and stifled prosperity,” he said.

    Young also urged Nigerians to demonstrate their commitment to the fight against corruption by making use of the innovative online platform which seeks to address the daily instances of corruption faced by millions of Nigerians.

    Abayomi Shogunle, assistant commissioner of police in charge of the Public Complaints Rapid Response Unit, urged Nigerians to take up the war against corruption and drop the habit of “leaving it for God”.

    Delegates at lunch received a guided demonstration of the platform. “Report Yourself” offers Nigerians the means to instantaneously report corruption, bribery, and graft with the option of filing an official compliant with the Nigerian Police Force Public Complaints Rapid Response Unit.

     

  • This is Lagos…City of aquatic splendour, dry taps

    This is Lagos…City of aquatic splendour, dry taps

    In this prelude to an investigation on contaminated sachet water in Lagos, HANNAH OJO examines the Lagos water crisis and the sketchy alternative Lagosians are forced to embrace.

    The Third Mainland Bridge, the longest bridge in West Africa, looms high above the Lagos lagoon connecting the mainland and Island. Makoko, a community of small shanties, tiny wooden houses standing on stilts, is close by. Makoko, like Lagos, is surrounded by water yet its residents have none to drink. This has earned Lagos a moniker: the city surrounded by water yet little to drink. Just like the Third Mainland Bridge, lack of potable water connects the mainland and Island. Welcome to Lagos, West Africa’s commercial nerve centre, the city that keeps attracting immigrants yet struggles to meet their water needs.

    With a booming population of 24 million people and a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) set at $91 billion, Lagos has the fifth largest and fastest growing economy in Africa. Despite its avalanche of skyscrapers, veritable human capital, and its aquatic splendour, the city suffers perennial water shortage. It is a bitter twist of irony that the fifty-year-old state, despite its resource and infrastructural development, has not been able to solve its water problems. This does not stop the government from dreaming big; it desires to transform the city from a mega city to a smart city.

    Read also: INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (1)

    Lagos ranked among the top ten choice destinations for rural–urban migration in the world, according to a 2014 Facebook data which compared users home town with their residence.  As if to corroborate this, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, at a media parley in 2016, disclosed that  86 immigrants enter Lagos every minute; hence the urgent need for the state to provide facilities for its teeming population.  However, the steep rise in population has not been matched by a complementary increase in the supply of water.

    Many Lagosians rely on other sources but the government for water supply at a high cost. While some residents construct wells and boreholes, some just buy water.

    “I never grew up with government water supply so I am used to sourcing water from alternative sources right from childhood. It is a huge cost for me because I fetch a paint bucket for N10 while the water vendors charge as high as N50 for a gallon. This is ridiculous and frustrating but I don’t have a choice,” Femi Olutade, a millennial Lagos resident, told The Nation.

    Read also: INVESTIGATION: Poison on parade (2)

    The Lagos State Water Corporation is responsible for water supply across the state. Bedeviled by continuous population increase, poor infrastructure, failed public-private partnerships, inadequate budget allocation, poor labour practices and unstable power supply, the corporation falls short. And providing enough water to meet the needs of the citizens remains a dream, just like Lagosians waiting for government water supply from their dry taps.

    “The population increase is one of our major challenges. With the research we have carried out, we need about 700 million gallons a day  (MGD)for 22 million Lagosians. The gap is about 500 MGD which we are trying to close,” Muminu Adekunle Badmus, an engineer and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Lagos Water Corporation, told The Nation.

    The Environmental Rights Action (ERA), a non-governmental organisation (NGO) states that only 10 per cent of the population has access to water supplied by the Lagos State Water Corporation (LSWC). With four major water works and additional 48 micro and mini water works scattered in various parts of the city, the corporation produces about  215 MGD, according to the CEO. A report by ERA states that despite the number of water works, water supply remains abysmal due to some dysfunctional water works.

    The Lagos Water Corporation will need $3.5 billion to execute a Water Master Plan. This includes the construction of additional large water schemes by 2020 to cover the water needs of the which is estimated to be 733 MGD by then.  While Lagos plans to make this a reality, more immigrants keep pouring into the city, the shortage in water supply remains, along with implications for Lagosians.


    Leo Heller, the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights to water and sanitation, said the huge deficit in the provision of water by the government is “unacceptable …for millions of the megacity’s residents”. Heller added that it is worrying how the water shortage makes Lagos residents vulnerable.

    The shortage has led to the unregulated proliferation of boreholes, which is regarded as a threat to the stability of the state’s water table, which experts claim might subside if exploited beyond a certain limit. Asides its implication for nature, there are also public health risks. Many times, boreholes are sited indiscriminately close to soak-aways posing health risks.

    Kabir Ahmed, an architect and chairman of the Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission, an agency responsible for regulating water supply and wastewater management, revealed that 50 per cent of residents who visit hospitals do so as a result of water-related ailments.

    “The indiscriminate citing of boreholes, pit latrines, soak-aways has also been polluting the water source because you observe traces of coliform bacteria in various water sources across the state,” Ahmed told The Nation.

    The average cost of digging borehole in Lagos cost between N200,000 to N350, 000 depending on the water level.  In recent times, the human cost of lack of potable water supply in the state has been dire. In February 2016, 25 children from Otodo-Gbame, a slum (now demolished) in the Ikate Eti Osa Local Government Area, died after drinking the community’s pathogen-infected water. In March this year at Queens College, a government secondary school in Yaba, Lagos mainland, three students died and scores of others were hospitalised as a result of a gastroenteritis epidemic contacted through contaminated water sources.  Water-borne diseases, such as typhoid, cholera, diarrhea and hepatitis remain a major burden to public health. Experts said the spate of illness is not surprising since water and sanitation are key drivers of public health.

    A sketchy alternative

    As taps run dry as a result of the state’s inability to provide water, many Lagos residents have been affected by the high cost of sourcing water from water vendors popularly known as “mai ruwa”.  These water vendors, who buy water from tankers and houses with boreholes, resell to members of the public, increasing prices when there is the lack of power supply and fuel scarcity to power generators. The hygiene of the water supplied by these sellers remains questionable, increasing risks of contamination.


    Nature abhors a vacuum. Packaged water in small sachets retailed on the streets has also served as an alternative source of water for many Nigerians since the close of the last century. Popularly called “Pure Water”, as they are supposed to be treated, their quality and hygiene status have been questionable. There are indications that the quality of sachets of the pure water sold in Lagos do not conform to the highest standards of purity.

    The sachet water phenomenon is also considered as an environmental nuisance owing to the waste generated by consumers who litter the streets with sachets. Many times, these sachets end up blocking the sewage and causing flooding.

    In 2013, Dr Sola Oguntona and Prof Oluwole Adedeji of the Lagos State University carried out a research testing contamination of sachet water produced in the industrial area of Ikeja,  Lagos.

    Six samples sachets of pure water were randomly selected from the open market and studied by an examination on the physical parameters and inorganic constituents. The result showed that all the sachet water samples were acidic. The samples also showed high level of heavy metals and chloride.

    Despite doubt over purity standards and the likelihood of contamination, many Lagosians are forced to consume sachet water due to lack of choice.

    “People are paying for the failure of the government to provide water on the table. The so-called pure water is unsafe and not environmentally sustainable. We don’t endorse sachet water as an alternative or as a means of getting water to the people,” Akinbode Oluwafemi, Deputy Executive Director of ERA, told The Nation.

    Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) under contention

    The government plans to bridge the water gap through public-private partnership (PPP).

    “In the area of environment, we will improve water supply through PPP and increase the capacity utilisation of water treatment plants….”, Ambode announced during the presentation of  the 2017 budget proposal of N812.998 billion to the House of Assembly.

    The state government’s plan to encourage private sector participation in the water sector has been questioned by Our Water Our Right Campaign, a coalition movement of civil society organisations and labour unions.

    “We are also challenging the state government in terms of their approach which is to think that privatisation is the silver bullet to solving the problem of water in Lagos. From examples of different countries of the world privatisation has failed. Privatisation is going to cause a lot of problem for the poor people in Lagos. There is going to be access and pricing problems as well as social unrest for the 80% of residents of the state who depend on the informal sector,” Oluwafemi said.

    However, the government  has maintained that PPP is not privatisation, stating that the Lagos Water Corporation will retain ownership of the assets while the state government regulates the sector.

    Nigeria is classified as a water-short country, whose water resources is likely to reduce from 2,506 cubic metres per year in 1995 to 1,175 cubic meters in 2025, if not properly managed, according to UNICEF. The human right to water requires, among other things, that drinking water be affordable and accessible. The possibility of achieving this reality by 2020 appears distant to Lagosians.

    Reporting for this story was supported by Code for Africa’s impactAFRICA fund and the Bill & Melinda Gate Foundation.

  • Chowberry: Feeding Abuja poor families through technology

    Chowberry: Feeding Abuja poor families through technology

    In other to curb the menace of food poverty in Nigeria and Africa as a whole, Chowberry, a technology-driven social enterprise and innovation of a Nigerian tech entrepreneur, Oscar Ekponimo has recently partnered with charitable organisations to reach out to indigent families in Gishiri Village, a rural community in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

    The free food distribution was held in conjunction with food retailers and supermarkets in the city engaging with the innovative web-based software application called Chowberry to connect needy and impoverished families.

    The foods distributed are those that would otherwise go to waste due to expiration and they were gathered through partnerships with Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and charity organizations.

    Chowberry App

    According to the founder of Chowberry, Ekponimo, The programme, Project FoodAccess is designed to provide nutritious food to selected families in various communities and help reduce the challenge of hunger and food deprivation.

    Explaining how the Chowberry app works, Ekponimo stated that; “Using the Chowberry platform, our partner NGO use the service to source affordable nutrition, mainly food products nearing end of shelf-life listed by retail stores for the beneficiaries. The NGO is also responsible for pickup and distribution to the local and impoverished families. The recently held campaign was in Gishiri community and we aim to impact more families with Chowberry and improve our social enterprise while staying true to reaching households with affordable nutrition.’’

    “Chowberry is a web-based software that helps retailers track and monitor food products approaching the end of shelf-life, the same monitored products are analysed and streamed as deep discount via a proprietary algorithm from which NGO’s and low-income earners can purchase affordable and low-priced food items to meet their nutrition needs,” he added.

    It will be recalled that Chowberry after winning the prestigious Rolex Award for Enterprise in 2016, has enjoyed huge applaud and international recognition in its feat of feeding poor Nigerians through tech innovation.

  • ‘HELP, we’re wasting away’

    ‘HELP, we’re wasting away’

    • Stranded Rivers State medical students on scholarship abroad cry out.

    About 159 final Year Rivers State students are stranded overseas with no certificates and accommodation as a result of the nonpayment of their tuition fees by the Nyesom Wike-led Rivers State government. Among them are dejected medical students whose hope of becoming medical doctors has been placed on edge.

    I have been stopped from taking exams. I was not allowed into the hospital to see patients. I ought to have completed studies since last year but I am stranded here because the school cannot issue me a certificate.

    FLORENCE  TAMUNO, an indigene of Ogu/Bolo Local Government Area in Rivers State has been stopped from attending clinical rotations since September last year. The 26-year-old medical student of All Saints University, St. Vincent Grenadines is presently stranded in the Caribbean with no accommodation and food to eat. Her hope of graduating as a medical doctor has been cut short since she has been denied a certificate of graduation owing to a staggering tuition debt of USD 39,975.00. This is exclusive of hostel fees and living allowance.

    Tamuno, who got a scholarship under the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency (RSSD) in 2013 after completing a degree in Physiology from a UK university, has not received study allowance from the Rivers State government since December 2014.

    “I have been stopped from taking exams. I was not allowed into the hospital to see patients. I ought to have completed studies since last year but I am stranded here because the school cannot issue me a certificate,” she told The Nation in a wearied voice over the phone.

    There are about 16 RSSDA sponsored final year medical students stranded at the All Saints University, St. Vincent Grenadines. This number does not include other final years students in fields such as engineering, Law, Science, ICT, etc scattered in various schools in India, Europe, Canada, UK and the Caribbean.

    After winning the governorship election in 2015, Governor Nyesom Wike withdrew about 350 Rivers State students from various universities abroad, citing economic challenges for his action.

    However, the governor promised to keep final year students and pay their tuitions in order to enable them complete their studies and earn a certificate.  It was learned that the Wike-led government followed up its promise to cater for the final year students by writing to their various schools to plead for more time for the new administration to take shape before payments will be issued out. After the time elapsed, the government wrote again for another three months which also elapsed and the total waiting time has now culminated in a period of two years and some months. The final year RSSDA scholars, inclusive of the medical students, have not been paid any living allowance, leaving them as victims of eviction in their various hostels.

    One of the medical students, a female who is presently stranded at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, who pleaded not to be named, told The Nation that she has had to engage in illegal activities to earn a living in the UK. Also, her medical tuition fees for two years stand at 26, 000 pounds, while 18 months accommodation and upkeep stand at 15,300 pounds. She confessed that the nonpayment of living allowance which ought to be catered for by the scholarship has led her into exceeding the legally authorised 20 working hours per term. She also had to contend with running night shifts from 7.00pm-7.45 am Mondays- Fridays, a dire situation which leaves her stressed and tired for lectures.

    I wasn’t cleared for graduation since my fees are outstanding.  I can’t apply for a job because I don’t have a certificate.  I can’t even compete for little jobs which I am more than qualified for as a British College graduate. Sometimes I just ask myself, is this a blessing or a curse? We are here wasting away, while our mates have gone up to do higher things – she lamented, breaking into sobs intermittently.

    With their dreams of wearing a ward coat and a stethoscope hung on their neck fast disappearing, it did not come as a surprise that many of them have been left dejected and depressed. The inability to pay their outstanding fees in their various institutions also means that they cannot return to Nigeria to partake in the National Youths Services Corps programme. They are also at a crossroads because they have not been issued a return ticket to come back home, leaving them abandoned without care.

    ‘Rivers State has abandoned us’

    Another medical doctor in waiting who simply identified himself as Promise told The Nation that the RSSD scholarship is a full sponsorship in which the government pays for tuition, accommodation and a living allowance. Also, a return ticket is issued at the end of the programme to enable them to return home to contribute to the development of the state and the nation as a whole.

    “Before now, the government paid our fees in advance, so when the issue of late payment started, the school sent an invoice but the government wrote back promising to pay later. So we were allowed to continue with clinical rotations. We were finally stopped three months to our graduation. Two years and four months ago was the last time we got anything from the government. We have written series of letters to the governor, commissioners and the RSSD agency. They keep promising but nothing has been done. Most of us don’t have a place to stay. The current economic situation in Nigeria is not helping matters because when they send you money and you convert it, it won’t be able to buy you anything.

    “We are even forced to ask, if things are like this, please send us return ticket. Let us return to Nigeria and start something with our lives. The only person we hear from is the Executive Director of the agency and all he says to us is ‘sooner than later,’ which has not translated to anything in the last two years,” Promise lamented.

    A long, winding promise

    Although the students have kept in touch with the agency, it had yet to translate to alleviating their plight since promises made have not been fulfilled. Amadi Ugochukwu, a final year medical doctor in the Caribbean, disclosed that himself and other affected students have been in dire straits owing to the terrible living conditions and humiliation they have to bear as a result of nonpayment of their tuition and living allowance by the Rivers State government.

    “The situation is not just restricted to RSSDA sponsored students in the Caribbean. Scholars in Canada, UK, Hungary, Russia and other countries where students are stranded also face the same fate as a result of the neglect by the government of Rivers State. We simply plead with them to expedite action on our plight so we can live like saner human beings again.”

    Political undertones

    Could it be that stranded Rivers State scholars are victims of circumstance used to settle election scores? A statement by another stranded student in Hungary, who also pleaded anonymity, may have confirmed this assertion.

    We are a set of students sent by the Rivers State government to study medicine and surgery under the previous administration of Rotimi Amaechi. Everything was on track and our studies were not hindered prior to this 2015 election. Things started changing when the APC lost the election and our present governor was sworn in. The process of governance which is supposed to be a continuum was hampered by the present administration.

    “The present governor promised that all those in the final year would be sponsored to finish their programme, while those who do not fall into this category would be brought back to Nigeria to continue. Names were compiled with authorisation from different schools all over the world but to our greatest surprise, from 2015 till this day, making it two years and four months, our fees and upkeep have not been paid for the same time frame. We have been stranded and kept incommunicado. We have even asked for our return ticket but to no avail. This is a case of adoption and abandonment by the Rivers State government. In saner climes, it is a criminal offence but this is Nigeria and anything goes. We are pleading with Governor Wike to come to our aid.  As a former minister of state for education, we hope he better understands our plight.

    The Executive Director of RSSDA, Mr Larry Pepple, in a phone conversation with The Nation, explained the delay in payment of the final year scholars allowances, saying Rivers State government is not shielded from the challenge of the economy.

    “You know that the mainstay of the nation’s economy used to be derived exclusively from oil. So the fall in oil and the spiral of naira nose diving and dollar taking a shot to the heavens is affecting the funding of everything particularly scholarships abroad.

    “River State government is trying as much as it can to pay the fees. We have some financial approvals but they have not metamorphosed to physical cash, which we hope and pray it will happen very soon. We are in touch daily with the students and they understand this situation and very soon, not too long from now, this will be over”.

    An attempt was made to speak with the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) of Rivers State, Mr Kenneth Kobani, but calls made to his phone were unanswered. The SSG also failed to respond to text messages sent to his phone.

    It would be noted that the RSSDA scholarship for Rivers State indigenes commenced in the 2008/2009 academic session with the target to send 300 students overseas annually. One of the reasons why the state put up the scholarship scheme was to curb deprivation in employment opportunities to the Rivers people by multinational companies who source for their manpower from outside the state, on the excuse that the state lacks requisite manpower for the sector within their grasp. The scholarship scheme also hopes to position Rivers youths to play a significant role in the international and global economy through exposure to modern learning in a very conducive atmosphere.

  • Miserable lives of Nigerian Students in Russia

    Miserable lives of Nigerian Students in Russia

    Nigerian students on the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) scheme in Russia and other European countries are helpless as infants. HANNAH OJO, who traced the plight of some of the students, reports that students of Rivers State origin under the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency scholarship scheme are also not spared in the hardship of unpaid allowances.

    Many times I had to go to the lab on empty stomach and my supervisor will tease me about eating the wheat samples marked for experiments.  We trek to campuses in the winter because we can’t afford public buses. We owe hostel fees. We borrow from other students to survive while the ladies face unspeakable options.

    These were the words of Nigeria’s wonder boy,  Ifesinachi Nelson Ezeh, who made history when he completed his master’s degree in Agronomy at Saint Petersburg State Agrarian University in Russia, graduating with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 5.0, the highest the country has ever recorded.

    Nelson,  who arrived in Russia for an undergraduate degree in 2008 with 40 other Nigerians who passed the federal scholarship exams, were beneficiaries of a Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) between Nigeria and Russia. Under the said scheme, Russia pays the tuition, while Nigeria takes care of the living costs of the students of the students with a monthly stipend of $500 dollars.

    The scholarship is awarded to Nigerians under the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) between Nigeria and a number of countries, including Russia, Cuba, Turkey, Egypt and others.  At present, there are over 350 Nigerian BEA scholars in Russia from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory undergoing their undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate studies. Under the agreement, the Russian Federation takes care of the students’ tuition fees. The Russian government fulfils their side of the bargain as long as the student maintains a very good academic record.

    Findings made by The Nation revealed that the stipends, which the Nigerian government is supposed to pay the students quarterly, have, however, not been consistent in the past seven years.  The last two years have been particularly gruesome as payments were not made for 12 straight months between 2015 and 2016.

    The cost of unpaid allowances is devastating to the scholars. The psychological impact is also immeasurable as the students live in fear of what could happen next.

    “The financial insecurity adds to the academic cross. The school authorities are either on your neck or fellow students are asking for their money back. You can’t hide because the Russian law provides that you stay where you were registered,” added Ezeh, who likened trekking in cold spring morning to walking in a freezer.

    We are asked to work as janitors to offset hostel costs

    Their faces looked thinned with hunger and they appear grumpy in their winter jackets and backpacks.  Many of them travelled long distances spending between 10 to 20 hours to get to Moscow, the Russia capital where a peaceful protest was staged to demand the payment of their 12 months long allowance.

    “Is it fair? Pays us; Pay hostel allowance for medical students,” were some of the inscriptions on the placards the student displayed during their protest in October 2016.

    Speaking on their grievances, the scholars alleged that the non-payment of their allowance was not occasioned by economic recession but incompetence and malpractices on the part of the scholarship board. The students recalled that as far back as 2014 when Nigeria had the largest GDP growth in Africa, they were owned allowances. In the protest video released online, one of the students said they are sometimes asked to work as janitors to offset their hotel bills.

    “Many of us are high achievers. We represent our schools in various competitions. We are doing our own part and all the government does is to treat us anyhow. We have tried all diplomatic means but there was no response.  It has gotten to the extent that a  church had to set up a fundraiser for Nigerian students,” the leader of the protest said in a video obtained by The Nation.

    In a recent chat,  Faith Olapade,  President, Association of Nigerian Scholarship Students in Russia told The Nation that after the protest in Moscow, the government reacted by paying a  token which barely added up to two of the 13 months owed.

    “What the government paid is not even enough to pay back what the students had borrowed to survive the 13 months of non-payment. We were also told that the token is part of our 2016 stipend. We really don’t understand why it is so since we are still being owed some months in 2015.

    “The situation surrounding the Bilateral Education Agreement, the Federal Scholarship Board funding and students’ stipend is very complicated. We will appreciate if someone from the Federal Scholarship Board explains to us and the rest of Nigeria why the scheme pays in bits and we are subjected to suffering,” asked Olapade, a Computer Science student at Tver State Technical University, Russia.

    Among other countries participating in the BEA with Russia, Nigeria is known for lateness and delays. For the instance, the new BEA scholarship students from Nigeria arrived in Moscow on November 9, two months after the 2016/2017 academic year started.  This is aside from the fact that Nigerian students are also known for paying their hostel and insurance bills late.

    “The non-payment of allowances has literally turned Nigerian scholars to beggars. Most of us can’t afford to eat even once a day and others can’t make it to classes due to the lack of transport fare. Some have even been evicted from their hostels because they could not pay the fee, while others are hanging on with a weekly threat of eviction.

    “It’s really difficult for us right now as Russia is also going through an economic crisis and prices of commodities are inflated. Also, surviving the cold weather is difficult without warm clothing. To make matters worse, we all have student visas and this makes it legally impossible for us to earn on our own. The current economic crisis in Nigeria, unrealistic bank rates, strict laws of outbound transfer and recent limits put on ATM cards make it really difficult for our parents to assist us in these trying times.

    “We are pleading with the government to remember us by coming through with the remainder of our 2015 stipends and full 2016 payment. We didn’t sign up to be scholars to suffer this way,” Olapade further stated.

    A source who pleaded anonymity in the office of Bilateral Scholarship Board, Abuja confirmed to The Nation that the allowance for scholars in the BEA scheme is usually included in the annual budget of the ministry of Education.

    Also, the BEA department is not known for honouring requests for information on some of its activities, even in some cases where an FOI request would have been made.

    For the federal government scholars in Russia,  calls made to the Nigerian Scholarship Board to inquire about their allowances are usually met with the response that the budget has not been implemented or they are waiting for the Central Bank.

    A postgraduate student in Russia, who pleaded anonymity for fear of victimisation, told our correspondent that the hardship they face by non-payment of the allowance is made worse by the fact finding a job in Russia as an African is like finding a needle in a haystack.

    “The image of Nigeria is at stake. Russia has bilateral education agreement with a host of countries but the Russians, from the workers at the Russian Ministry of Education to the staff of respective universities, will let you know that Nigeria will always bring their students late.

    “Nigerian students will always be the last to pay for their hostel accommodation and they always ask for a grace period before they purchase the compulsory medical insurance. The list goes on.

    “A number of churches where some of our scholars worship now organise fund-raising services to help out those of us who can’t  pay for hostel accommodation so we don’t end up sleeping on the streets in the cold weather,” the student said.

    Israel Ojonugwa Ibrahim, another Nigerian student in Russia, also decried the situation they are faced asking the government to help redeem their dignity as human beings.

    “There are times when you weren’t sure of what to eat the next day. We try to look for jobs but to no avail because we are studying with students’ visa and it is not legal to work,” Ibrahim lamented.

    Like FG, like Rivers

    Another body that has reneged on its commitment to students on scholarship is the Rivers State Government. In December 2015, Governor Nyesom Wike concluded plans to withdraw Rivers students on scholarship in foreign countries back to Nigeria on the basis that the government can no longer continue to fund the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency’s oversea scholarship scheme.

    The state Commissioner for Agric, Ominim Jack, was reportedly quoted to have said in a meeting with parents that the state government could no longer sustain the scholarship scheme as a result of the current economic situation in the country. Thereafter, the state government then initiated the transfer of the students back to Nigeria in order to continue at either the University of Port Harcourt or the Rivers State University of Science and Technology.

    The development was greeted with disapproval from parents of the students, who also pleaded with Governor Wike to consider other means of sustaining the scholarship programme since some of the students were midway into their programme.

    “The curriculum can never be the same,” one of the parents was quoted to have said.

    However, it was learnt that before the governor reached the decision to stop the scheme in 2015, the students’ allowances were not paid for almost a year.

    At the time the news of the planned deportation of Rivers state students abroad broke, a Canadian,  Benedicte LeMaitre, from Winnipeg, took to GoFundMe a crowdfunding platform to raise $250,000 for some RSSDA students studying at the University of Manitoba in Canada. The fundraising did not turn out successful as only $944 was raised since 13 months ago when the campaign was launched.

    Canada was home to nearly 250 Nigerian students who were studying at 14 Canadian universities on the RSSDA scholarship. On the average, international students pay $7,000 to $11, 000 tuitions per term for a full load of classes.

    Kennedy Roland, a medical student studying at the University of Pecs Medical School, Hungary, confirmed to The Nation that only about seven of them were left since the government stopped paying stipends to students.

    He said: “It’s been so bad that other students had to accommodate some of us. For 27 months and still counting, we have not been paid our upkeep. I’m being helped by a student who is accommodating and helping me with feeding. Sometimes, my family tries   to send me money for feeding but it has not been easy since ATM has been stopped abroad.”

    Roland, who hopes to graduate in the middle of 2019, has an outstanding $15,300 as fees for his third year. He is presently not able to pay for the current semester.

    However, the Director, Press and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Education, Mrs Chinenye Ihuoma, said government owed the students $500 per person stipend for only one year and two months, not for two years as earlier claimed.

    She added that the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, had given approval for the payment of the money.

    “The FBS (Federal Scholarship Board) is awaiting the release of money to that effect,” Mrs. Ihuoma said, adding: “The debt is for all the scholars in our BEA (Bilateral Education Agreement) countries and not only Russia.

  • ‘How we were trapped in Libya’s sex enclave’

    ‘How we were trapped in Libya’s sex enclave’

    Her sitting posture cast the image of a peacock in repose.  Her eyes appear lost in memory as she recalled the horrific details of life in a sex enclave and subsequent detention in a Libyan migrant cell.

    “I used to have a long wavy hair. The female guards cut it off together with the extension I was wearing when I got to the Mitiga prison in Tripoli. Soldiers raided our brothel and I was captured,” she recalled, running her fingers through the short thread on her head.

    Anita, 27, is the eldest of 19 girls sheltered at a facility for migrant and displaced persons managed by the Web of Hearts Foundation in Lagos. The girls are among the migrants who voluntarily returned from Libya on the 23rd of March, this year.

    Describing life in the migrants cell as not fit for humans, she blurted out: “We were stripped naked and asked to leap like frogs.  The guards wore a glove and inserted their hands into our private parts to be sure we were not hiding anything. They took my money and jewelry. I came home dry and empty.”

    Recalling how she was trafficked into forced prostitution in Libya, Anita said she was persuaded by a friend, who met a woman that promised a job for girls as house helps in Germany.  Delighted by the prospect of earning forex, she sold off her clothing and accessories business to prepare for the trip. Subsequently, the woman who gave them the offer took them to a shrine in Benin to swear an oath which would bind them to repaying the travel expenses when they get to Europe. From Edo State, they set out for Abuja and slept in a gas station. Three other girls joined them.

    Suspicion set in when they were taken from Abuja to a mud house in Kano, where they spent three days with no passport or travelling documents in sight. Also, they were barred from asking questions and their phones seized. The reality then set in that they would make the journey to Europe by road through the desert and then cross the Mediterranean Sea to access Italy before finally getting to Germany. The traffickers, now working with a network of other people, placed the five girls on a motor bike, which conveyed them to Agadex in Niger Republic. They bribed their way through the borders and got packed into a Hilux van carrying about 40 persons to Libya, travelling through the desert in a sweltering weather.

    “We drank water from a well with a dead goat in it. Whenever anyone fell from the van, nobody bothered to wait to pick them up. We met militias at check points and we were forced to part with the money we had.  The men among us were dragged and beaten,” Anita recalled as a mist gathered in the corner of her eyes.

    Dusty and tired from the travails of a tortuous journey which saw them travelling through day and night in the desert for a week,  they made a stop at Sabha, an oasis city in southwestern Libya reputed to be the heart of Libya’s smuggling and human trafficking network.

    They had a bath and were fed with rice and egg. Soon, the girls drifted into sleep and were awoken by the sounds from speakers blaring music. Looking through the window, they saw girls clad in scanty dresses with men coming in and going out. They were shaken to a rude awakening when the woman who took them to a shrine in Edo State came in to say they had reached their final destination and would join the other girls the next day to work as sex workers.

    “She said we can’t make money for ourselves until we pay back 5,000 Libya Dinar to offset the cost of the journey. She called men to beat up any girl who refused to work. A girl poisoned herself to death. We woke her up one morning and saw her foaming in the mouth. Her corpse was thrown into the Medditerean Sea.

    “Sometimes we were made to sleep with 10 to 15 men in a day. Our madam charged 10 Dinars for a ‘short round’ from the men. We felt sick often and we experienced pains in our womb,” Anita bitterly cried. In December, soldiers raided their abode and they were taken to a migrant centre where she spent three months before being repatriated to Nigeria with the help of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

    ‘There is no mercy outside Nigeria’

    Nigerian ladies arriving from Libya last month
    Nigerian ladies arriving from Libya last month

    Twenty three-year-old Aramide spoke with a brittle temperament, measuring her speech in a hoarse tone.  Her journey as a sex worker began when a neigbour’s friend in Lagos informed her of a job opportunity in Malaysia as a maid.

    As a single mother with an 18-month-old-baby, she jumped at the offer, not minding the fact that she would have to make the journey through the desert.

    “My mum went to pray in a church and the pastor said I should proceed. On June 3, 2016, I joined two other girls and we proceeded to Kano, rode a bike to Niger and joined an overpacked Hilux van at Agadax heading for  Qatrum in  Libya.  We travelled for a week, drinking water used in feeding camels and begging for food. When people fell and died in the desert, we moved on like nothing happened,” she said.

    Aramide, who dropped out of secondary school after she got pregnant, further explained;

    “I was housed with a Nigerian man in Qatrum.  I cleaned his house and he had sex with me every night for two weeks. A woman came to pick me from there to Sabha and I was taken to a ‘connection’ house. I had to sleep with 10 men a day. When I tried to escape, I was stabbed at the back.”

    The ‘connection’ house, a brothel, it was learnt, is a narrow long room where about 15 persons have their bed space with curtains used as walls for demarcation. The girls only wore female condoms for protection against STI.  She was into forced prostitution for seven months before the Arab police busted their arcade on the 14th of January and she was taken to a migrant detention camp. Like Anita, she arrived in Lagos on the 23rd of March this year and had been undergoing psychotherapy at the Web of Hearts Foundation facility in Lagos.

    For men and women considering taking a trip through the desert in search of greener pastures, she has a message: “Don’t trust anyone, even your blood relations. Parents were selling their children. Even if there’s a passport and someone wants to take you to travel, it’s a lie. There is no mercy outside Nigeria”, she stated.

    Mrs Bose Aggrey is the founder of Web of Hearts Foundation, an NGO creating a platform for migrants’ reintegration into the society.  Sharing her experience in catering to the girls so far, she said: “My eyes have been opened to the issue of illegal migration as a front burner which government must address. We must create opportunities within our society that open our people to see what good is out here.

    “With the stories we have heard from these returnees, you find out that Nigeria is better than a country like Libya. Immigrants are not accepted in terms of religion and colour. There is a slave master mentality which has opened our youths to being sexually abused and morally debased. A whole lot can be done at the local level to ensure that our youths are not lured into illegal migration by traffickers,” she stated.

    Data showing Nigeria as a top source. 

    According to the Global Report on trafficking in persons published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Libya is a destination and transit country for men and women from sub-Sharan Africa and Asia subjected to forced labour and forced prostitution. The report further states that trafficking networks reach into Libya from Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan and other sub-Sahara. These networks  subject migrants to forced labour and forced prostitution following fraudulent recruitment, confiscation of identity and travel documents, withholding or nonpayment of wages and debt bondage.

    Data Showing pattern of Nigerian victims of human trafficking by EU country. Credit-CodeforAfrica
    Data Showing pattern of Nigerian victims of human trafficking by EU country. Credit-CodeforAfrica

    Nigeria enacted a law in 2003 prohibiting trafficking in persons and also established the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP). However, owing to Nigeria’s porous borders, women and children continue to be trafficked within and beyond the country for forced labour and sexual exploitation. Children are also sold for money. Equally, NAPTIT reported that Nigerians make up 60-80 percent of girls who are trafficked for sex trade in Europe.

    Also, Data from EuroStat shows that a total of 1322 Nigerian citizens were trafficked to EU between 2010 and 2012, making Nigeria the top source country for non-EU victims of human trafficking. Equally, EU members registered 267 Nigerians who were prosecuted for human trafficking in the same time lapse. The overall gender distribution of reported prosecuted traffickers is reported as 71 percent male and 27 percent female.