The Federal Government has said only 31 per cent of the population have access to improved water in their homes.
The Federal Government said this in a report on Nigeria Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Poverty Diagnostic Report.
The report was launched by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, in Abuja.
Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, said the sector faced significant challenges because of reduced numbers of Nigerians with access to improved water and sanitation.
According to him, only 29 per cent of Nigerians have access to improved sanitation.
The minister who said the National Water Supply and Sanitation policy of 2000 had not yielded results in 17 years, called for a review of the policy.
“There is therefore the need for serious review of the policy with a view to fashioning out a better model that will enhance more collaborative efforts of all the three tiers of government as well as promote private sector participation and access to other sources of funding the urban water supply and sanitation,” he said.
Osinbajo, said there is need for governments at all levels to work together to bridge the demand for water supply in urban areas.
He said despite improvement in water coverage across the country, Nigeria still had a long way to go in providing access to reliable water supply for Nigerians.
According to the vice president, the overall effective urban water supply is still below 50 per cent.
He blamed this on poor maintenance and unreliability of supplies in urban areas.
Osinbajo said: “Despite the giant strides that have been made the challenges are considerable and would require continuing resourcefulness and hard work.
“Although the percentages of the urban and semi-urban population that have access to reliable water supply of acceptable quality have improved over the years there is still a rather long way to go.”
The Nigerian Association of Hydrogeologists (NAH), has warned of impeding water crisis by 2020 because of poor management of groundwater basins.
The President of the association, Ehidiamhen Olumese, disclosed this on Sunday in Ilorin while addressing newsmen after the association’s National Executive Meeting (NEC).
Olumese said the impending crisis could be avoided by the acquisition of both hydrological data and systematic study of basin aquifers.
He said updating and full implementation of the National Water Resources Master Plan was now imperative.
He said this development also called for a strong financial commitment and prudent management of available resources by state governments and support to River Basin Development Authorities to achieve their mandate based on set targets that could be evaluated periodically.
“The groundwater level is going down and we are giving water projects to quacks.
“Indiscriminate sinking of boreholes is not helping the matter. We must become aware of this and do something.
“Projects are executed without professional counselling as hydrogeologists are not consulted.
“The Lake Chad is shrinking and this may soon be causing loss of jobs” Olumese said.
He lamented that the government is inconsistent with its policy on River Basins, adding with proper policies and commitment Nigeria could feed Africa through its river basins.
The NAH President disclosed that the association’s 29th Annual Conference, tagged Ilorin 2017 will hold in Ilorin from Nov. 5 to Nov. 10.
He said the conference has as its theme, “Strategies to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals in Water Resources”.
Olumese said that the conference would also focus on Climate Change and inter-basin water transfer, surface and groundwater resources management, environmental monitoring and restoration as sub-theme.(NAN)
Water, water everywhere. The paradox of water. I am not referring to the tragic floods of Benue State nor those of Texas caused by Hurricane Harvey. I am not referring to Huricane IRMA which has caused so much devastation in the Caribbean and United States. Rather, my mind is on the ancient riverine Community of Gelegele in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State which I visited again on Friday September 8. It was like keeping an appointment with destiny; I had promised myself and officials of the Presidential Amnesty Programme that the next time we visit the town, we must leave a positive mark. I had no doubt what that should be.
Gelelge is an oil-rich town in the watery creeks of the Niger Delta which has almost been by-passed by civilization and development in spite of centuries of contact with Europeans..
Its being virtually submerged in water, the town had no safe drinking water. It reminded me of the sailor in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s famous poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” who was in a ship at sea, but had no water to drink because it was salt water. He had lamented “Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink”
Like the Ancient Mariner, Gelegele was virtually inside water, but had none to drink. The town being oil rich, with gas flaring right inside it, but not in a demonstrable way, benefitting from its natural resources, was another paradox.
I knew that the government of President Muhammadu Buhari has evolved policies to stop gas flaring, involve the people directly in the wealth of their land by encouraging them to participate in the Modular Refinery project, produce mass jobs with the proposed pipeline surveillance project and generally, take the lead in the development of the Region. But I was also conscious of the reality that these cannot be achieved immediately, so I thought of some quick-impact project that would make life easier. So I decided that we need to develop a big borehole that would be high yielding, easy to operate and easy to maintain.
It was Chinua Achebe in his 1960 book , “No Longer at Ease” who admonished that “A man who lives on the banks of the Niger (River) should not wash his hands in spittle.” That could well be the story of Gelelege.
When I returned to Gelegele on September 8, to commission the borehole, I felt a sense of fulfillment although this is essentially, a gesture. I felt one with the people and the community; I felt we had a bond that will grow. Speaking and interacting with the community, led by His Royal Majesty Alagbabunafa of Olodiama with the Zonal President of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) Chief Robinson Ogunkoru, I had a feeling of elation especially when they let it be known that this is a Government that has rekindled their hope and an administration they can trust.
But I had more good news for them. The President Buhari Government is not only committed to ending gas flaring , but the process will also lead to the direct creation of an estimated thirty six thousand direct jobs and two hundred thousand indirect jobs in the Niger Delta Region. Additionally, some six million households will have access to renewable energy as the gas being flared, will be harnessed and channeled to homes.
The Gelegele people expressed their appreciation but had a request; they want to play an active part in the surveillance of pipelines. On this I assured them that it is the policy of government to make this project, community-based; the conviction of the Government is that the best persons who can do such a job, are the very communities through which the pipelines pass. Another request they made, is for skill acquisition centres; this I told them the Presidential Amnesty Programme is willing to look into within its budgetary approvals.
The next day, I was in Ondo State where I visited Governor Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu who wants the Federal Government to expand the Amnesty Programme to accommodate more youths in the Region in order to reduce youth restiveness. He also advised that educational training should be domesticated. I was happy about this as one of my first acts as Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, was to domesticate the offshore training of the project.
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Ondo State Council also conferred on me the award of Niger Delta Peace Ambassador.. The NUJ Chairman, Mr. James Sowole said this was in recognition of my “dynamic” leadership of the Amnesty Programme and my Peace-Building Initiatives in the Niger Delta.
At the Second Summit of the National Council of Niger Delta (NCND) held in Akure, I was elated as the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo rolled out the plans of the administration for the Niger Delta including the injection of more funds into the Presidential Amnesty Programme for overall greater impact in the Region.
I was also privileged to accompany the Vice President to Igbokoda, in Ilaje where he listened to the people, addressed and interacted with them at the Ondo State Niger Delta Communities Stakeholders Town Hall Meeting. I had nothing but praise for the youths who have maintained peace and along with the rest of the populace, warmly welcomed the Vice President and his delegation.
I came away from Ondo State ever convinced that the most challenging task we have is to engage the youths in whatever way; from vocation, education, training (especially in agriculture) empowerment to make them self-employed, to mass employment. I also had no doubt that this cannot be left to the federal and state governments alone; the private sector- especially the oil and gas companies- has to play a major role.
Brig.-Gen. Boroh is the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.
The European Union (EU) and Ekiti State government are collaborating to provide water, sanitation and hygiene facilities for people at the grassroots in a bid to reduce mortality rates that are caused by lack of such facilities. This dominated discussion at an EU-supported Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Reform Programme Phase III (WSSSRP III). ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA reports.
The Ekiti State Ministry of Public Utilities, in collaboration with the European Union (EU) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has organised an Inter-Ministerial Working Group on Water Resources Sector, Monitoring and Evaluation Framework.
The programme was aimed at domesticating the National Framework on Water Resources Monitoring and Evaluation. The state government set up the Inter-Ministerial Working Group to identify areas of collaboration with the EU and the UNICEF, particularly in the area of water supply and sanitation.
The support, stakeholders maintain, has become necessary because access to potable water is low, particularly at the rural areas despite the measures adopted in the past to ameliorate the situation.
It should be noted that poor sanitation and hygiene situations are the main causes of diarrhoea, malaria and under-five mortality.
The challenge facing Ekiti State’s water and sanitation sectors is multifaceted and hinge on defining the roles of stakeholders, building their skills and availability of financial resources to maintain long-term infrastructure.
This is demonstrated in inadequate sector policy, institutional framework and weak institutions that are poorly funded and unable to deliver on their mandates.
The consequence of these problems is the inability of institutions related to water resources sector to deliver sustainable water and sanitation services to the people.
Therefore, the EU-supported Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Reform Programme Phase III (WSSSRPIII) was designed to address the priorities of the European Development Fund Country Support under Focal Sector 2 that promote state and local governance platforms.
The overall objective was to support the effort of local and state governments to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the sectors.
The WSSSRP III, which is being implemented in three states of the federation, has taken off in Ekiti State in two local government areas of Gbonyin and Ekiti West.
Speaking at the workshop, EU-WSSSRP III Institutional and Policy Expert (IPE), Mr. Alaba Ogunsanjo, said the programme which runs from 2013 to 2018 focuses on improving water governance (water policies, laws and institutional framework) and access to safe water and sanitation through improved service delivery.
Ogunsanjo further explained that the programme is being funded by the EU in a cost-sharing arrangement with the state and local government areas.
He also revealed that the EU has been supporting the state in the implementation of soft components of the project which include baseline survey in small towns in Gbonyin and Ekiti West local government areas.
Others, according to him, are series of capacity building activities for state and local government workers, support in the implementation of water and sanitation policy and law and support for the development of monitoring and evaluation systems, among others.
He said: “The EU has supported Ekiti State in the identification, prioritisation and selection of water schemes for rehabilitation and upgrading and these include Egbe Dam, Ikogosi Water Scheme and Ido-Ile Water Scheme.
“The EU has also trained state and local government officials, civil society organisations and the media on community management in water supply, sanitation and hygiene in Gbonyin and Ekiti West local government areas on the best practices in the sector.
“The move will ensure accessibility, affordability, accountability and sustainability in small towns in the two focal local government areas.
“The EU, through the Ministry of Public Utilities, facilitated community management capacity building for water consumers’ associations in small towns in Gbonyin and Ekiti West local government areas.
“The development was intended to ensure community participation, ownership and sustainability of projects and programmes in the water supply, sanitation and hygiene sectors of the economy.”
In his remarks, Commissioner for Public Utilities, Chief Tunde Ogunleye, expressed concern over what he called “inadequate and conflicting data for water resources sector at state and local government levels.
He said this has become a source of concern despite efforts made to strengthen planning and monitoring systems by government and development partners.
The commissioner explained that the Ayo Fayose-led administration recognised the importance of water resources sector and is therefore focusing on policies and programmes that would ensure its availability.
Ogunleye revealed that Ekiti already has a water supply policy and law that have been approved while monitoring and evaluation framework for water resources would soon be approved by the government.
The step, he noted, would make Ekiti State one of the first states in Nigeria to domesticate the framework.
The commissioner commended the EU, UNICEF, World Bank, WaterAid and other donor agencies for their intervention and commitment to the realisation of monitoring and evaluation framework.
Ogunleye added: “The state government has also shown her commitment through the payment of N206 million which is part of the 30 per cent state’s and LGAs’ counterpart contributions for the WSSSRP III project.”
The state’s Chairman of the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations, Sir Olu Ogunrotimi, pleaded with the state government to fulfil its financial obligations towards the realisation of the WSSSRP III.
Ogunrotimi commended the efforts of the donor agencies in providing water, sanitation and hygiene facilities to boost public health, reduce mortality rates and make life better for the populace.
The world needs a more-focused and concerted approach to tackle the challenge of fresh water, which is gradually becoming a scarce commodity globally.
In a message at the World Water Week celebration in Stockholm, United Nations’ Deputy Secretary-General Ms. Amina Mohammed, stressed the need to accelerate progress towards sustainable development goals (SDG) on clean water and sanitation, and on water-related sustainable development goals.
“Today, strains on water are rising in all regions and climate change is aggravating the challenge. When water is unequally shared, or perceived to be, the risk of local and national conflict increases. We are even seeing in some cases the use of water as a weapon of war,” she said.
Ms. Mohammed joined other water experts, development professionals, policy-makers and stakeholders at the just-concluded week-long meeting in Stockholm, which focused on finding ways to better use, and reuse, the world’s increasingly scarce fresh water. Over 3,200 participants from 133 countries attended several hundred sessions, shared experiences, and discussed solutions to the world’s most critical water challenges.
For Ms. Mohammed, the priority is to harness national leadership and global partnership to scale up action. This, she noted, can be achieved only by ensuring the sustainability of fresh water and access to sanitation for all in order to achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs).
“Let us value and treasure water as we value and treasure life itself,” Ms. Mohamed said.
With water said to be in short supply, participants at the meeting were united that understanding and recognising the many different values attached to water was the key to more efficient use.
“Water is the lifeline of our civilisation. Without it, there is no hope of sustaining households, industries, food and energy production, or such key functions as hospitals. Access to safe water is necessary in order to implement the global development agenda.
“With increasing scarcity, we must recognise the many values attached to water, be it economic, social, environmental, cultural or religious. I believe that by re-valuing water, we will develop a deeper understanding and respect for this precious resource, and thus be better prepared for more efficient use,” said SIWI’s Executive Director, Torgny Holmgren
Throughout World water week, links were made between the different values of water, including its monetary value. “I believe we will see more diverse pricing structures in the future, allowing for more economical and efficient use,” said Holmgren.
South Africa’s Minister of Water and Sanitation, Nomvula Mokonyane, remarked: “We need to embrace new technologies, which support our route towards the realisation of the SDGs and that an appreciation must also be given to new world class technologies emanating from Africa.
“We cannot afford to continue to do what we did yesterday and expect to see a different result tomorrow. We must be bold,” said Mokonyane.
Mark Watts from C40, an organisation that gathers mayors of cities worldwide, told participants about the risks that big cities face from climate change and how water is key to mitigation and adaptation efforts.
“We see that water pattern disruption is often the first sign of serious climate impacts and 70 per cent of our member cities tell us that they are already seeing the significant and negative impacts of climate change. Sixty-four per cent of our member cities face significant risk from surface and flash floods,” Watts said, adding that water must be part of the climate mitigation programmes, but also a central part of climate adaptation.
Hungarian President János Áder, who addressed the event, said the world needs a more focused global effort towards tackling water challenges.
During event, Stockholm Junior Water Prize was awarded to Ryan Thorpe and Rachel Chang, USA, for their novel approach to detect and purify water contaminated with Shigella, E. coli, Salmonella, and Cholera. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden presented the prize.
The Stockholm Water Prize was awarded to Professor Stephen McCaffrey, USA, for his unparalleled contribution to the evolution and progressive realisation of international water law. The prize was presented by Carl XVI Gustaf, King of Sweden, patron of the prize, at a ceremony in Stockholm City Hall.
Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike has approved the release of N100 million as balance of the counterpart fund for the Rivers State Government/European Union Niger Delta Support Programme (RSG/EU NSDP) for two local government areas.
The government earlier released the first tranche of N100 million to EU Development Partners. The two benefiting local government areas are Akuku-Toru and Opobo-Nkoro.
The programme covers Opobo/Nkoro and Akuku-Toru.
Speaking during a visit by the Minister Counsellor of the European Union in Nigeria, Mr Kurt Cornelis, to the Government House, Port Harcourt, yesterday, Governor Wike said the government was committed to the project.
He said: “I have given the authority that by tomorrow the second tranche of N100 million be paid. Be rest assured that whatever needs to be done, would be done.
“I commend the EU for this programme. We will never be a state that will be backwards in water and sanitation projects”.
The governor urged those implementing the Niger Delta Support Programme component 3 to be transparent in awarding contracts for the projects.
“Water and sanitation remain key because they are close to the health of our communities. After this project, we expect the EU to give the state more grants, so that we can extend this to more local government areas “, Governor Wike said.
Mr Cornelis called for commitment from the state on the payment of the remaining 50 per cent counterpart fund for the RSG/EU NDSP water and sanitation projects in two councils.
According to him, the payment is required to determine the scope of the programme. He said contracts for the programme would be signed on October 26, 2017.
He said: “In principle, we need confirmation of that payment, if we are to carry out 100 per cent of the work. We need to take a decision today about the final scope of projects in Rivers State “.
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.
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.
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.
Lagos Water Corporation (LWC) is working to provide potable water for all residents in 2020, the Managing Director, Mr. Muminu Adekunle Badmus, has said.
Speaking at the weekend at the LWC headquarters in Ijora, Lagos during the disposal of un-useable pipes, electro-mechanical and scrapped metallic materials at the corporation’s service areas, he said: “The population of Lagos State keeps rising everyday. Therefore, we cannot say precisely when every Lagosian will get drinkable water. But our target is 2020. We are working to meet this target.
“Consumers should, however, help us by conserving potable water. We have introduced pre-paid meters to achieve this. We have supplied 12,000 meters to our customers and by the end of this year we intend to increase the figure to over 30,000.”
Badmus, an engineer, said LWC had many un-useable assets it intended to discard, adding that the bidding for the items was transparent.
The Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Deji Johnson, an engineer, said expression of interest for the purchase of un-useable pipes, electro-mechanical and scrapped metallic materials in locations of Lagos Water Corporation followed approval by the Lagos State government for the disposal of unserviceable pipes of different sizes and electro-mechanical equipment.
He said a committee was set up by the LWC management to identify materials and equipment no more in use at the corporation’s locations, adding that the committee came out with a list of unserviceable equipment and scrapped materials, which comprised pipes, mechanical, automobile and electrical equipment.
About three in 10 people worldwide, or 2.1 billion, lack access to safe, readily-available water at home, while six in 10, or 4.5 billion, lack safely-managed sanitation, a new report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has said.
The Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) report, “Progress on Drinking Water, Sanitation and Hygiene: 2017 Update and Sustainable Development Goal baselines”, presented the first global assessment of “safely managed” drinking water and sanitation services.
The report’s overriding conclusion was that too many people still lack access, particularly in rural areas. “Safe water, sanitation and hygiene at home should not be a privilege of only those who are rich or live in urban centres,” says WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
He said these are some of the most basic requirements for human health, and all countries have a responsibility to ensure that everyone can access them. Ghebreyesus said though billions of people have gained access to basic drinking water and sanitation services since 2000, these services do not necessarily provide safe water and sanitation.
“Many homes, healthcare facilities and schools also still lack soap and water for hand washing. This puts the health of all people but especially young children at risk for diseases such as diarrhoea,” the report accessed by The Nation said.
The House of Representatives is seeking the prioritisation of water resources by the Federal Government.
It therefore ensured that an executive bill being considered by the House on water successfully scaled second reading yesterday.
The Bill for an Act to Establish a Regulatory Framework for Water Resources Sector in Nigeria seeks to provide for equitable and sustainable development, management, use and conservation of Nigeria’s surface water and groundwater resources and for related matters.’
House leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, who introduced the bill said it contained solutions confronting the water sector in the country, including provisions that touched on uses of water such as domestic, industrial, irrigation and other agricultural components.
He said: “This bill guarantees our right to use water but guide against private ownership of water and ensure that the water resources of the nation are protected and managed in a sustainable and equitable manner for the befit of all persons.
“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.