Nigerian government has improved access to potable water – Minister

No fewer than 12.5 million Nigerians have improved access to potable water in the last six years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

The Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu made this known at the opening ceremony of a two-day Training for Water Resources Correspondents in the water sector, hosted by the National Water Resources Institute (NWRI), Kaduna.

According to him, the milestone is a testament to the commitment of the Federal Government towards meeting the potable water needs of the populace.

Mr. Adamu noted that the provision of potable water was a shared responsibility of the three tiers of government, saying that the Federal Government had played its part by ensuring that bulk water was readily available in all its dams and reservoirs.

The Minister also said that State Governments through their Ministries, Departments and Agencies were directly responsible for the provision of Water Supply to Urban, small towns and rural areas, while Local Government Authorities were responsible for the rural communities in their jurisdiction.

“Provision of potable water supply to all the inhabitants in Nigeria is a complementary shared constitutional responsibility of the three tiers of Government. While the Federal Government provides bulk raw water via its over 200 dams across the country, it is the responsibility of respective State Governments to provide potable water directly to the people. The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Water Resources is responsible for policy formulation, advice, data collection, monitoring and reporting and making special intervention which has brought about the completion of many water schemes nationwide. A total capacity of 146,669,125 liters/day and enabled additional 12.5 million population coverage by the Federal Government within the last 6 years,” Adamu said.

The Minister, while commending the institute for the leadership role in capacity development and research, noted that their efforts had seen to the signing of a Memorandum Of Understanding with Water Aid Nigeria on mainstreaming the curriculum for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene services in the training of Water Resources Practitioners.

“The training platform being provided today is to enable greater understanding of the activities in the Water sector and to enhance informed, effective, objective and balanced reportage of the trends in the Water Sector,” he added.

On his part, the Director-General, Nigeria Water Resources Irrigation, Prof. Emmanuel Adanu, NWRI l, stressed the importance of managing water as a scarce resource.

He said that Nigeria will continue to seek better ways to conserve water resources, adding that water must be tested with all reverence to sustainability.

A Director from the institute, Dr. Martins Eduvie, said that the proliferation of boreholes in the country was worrisome, saying that when in use or drilled, it should be done in a sustainable manner and in line with the drilling codes.

Nnenna.O