World Water Day: Nigeria calls for passage of water resources Bill into law

The Nigerian government has called for more legislative support for the passage of the National Water Resources Bill into law.

The Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu made the call at a press conference organised by the Ministry in partnership with Action Against Hunger Nigeria to commemorate the 2021 World Water Day, with the theme ” Valuing Water.”

The Minister noted that towards improving the value of water, “there is need to provide appropriate legislative frame work to create a stable and attractive environment for investors and development partners. It is in view of this that the Ministry is seriously engaging with the National assembly to ensure the passage of the national water resources into law.”

Investments in water resources
Mr. Adamu despite acknowledging that funding was one of the challenges faced by the sector, he emphasised the need for states and local governments to make the right investments in water resources.

He therefore called for increase sensitisation and education of  the public on the economic importance of water, saying “every single drop wasted affects the economy.”

He said the main problem was not only funding but the devaluation of the commodity.

“If everyone could value water and not pay lip service to it, then we will get everything going. We say water is important but don’t sit down to put our resources where our mouth is,” Adamu stated.

“The State and Local governments are not putting the right investment as regards water resources. They are not planning and putting on grassroots projects. What we are trying to do is to make everyone understand the value of water, and unless we value water, there will continue to be scarcity. Every single drop of water on the ground is a great loss to the economy of the nation.”

Mr Adamu reiterated the commitment of government to continue to collaborate with the development partners for proper execution of water policies in the country.

The Minister, in commemoration of World Water Day also launched the Nigeria Water Sanitation And Hygiene (WASH) Account 2018 and commissioned a solar borehole at Chika community in Abuja.

According to Him,”this document enables us to holistically track financing in and through the wash sector, particular the expenditure on water from different entities such as the Government at different levels, Development partners, NGOs, private sectors and house holds. This intended to facilitate better planning and location of water facilities to have larger coverage or increase access to his finite product.” 

While commissioning the project, the Minister urged the community to take ownership of the facility so that it can serve the purpose of its provision.

The Country Director, Action Against Hunger, Nigeria, Dabagia Dabagai, represented by his Deputy, Adama Diarassouba stated that in 2020, 740,828 persons benefited from their safe water, sanitation and hygiene programmes through multi-sectoral programmes in Borno and Yobe states.

He reiterated the commitment of the group in prioritising the provision of safe water during natural disaster situations, conflicts and in vulnerable locations.

Lateefah Ibrahim