Nigeria’s water crisis: Beyond rising budget allocations
By many accounts, dearth of potable water has exacerbated economic challenges and fueled the spread of waterborne diseases like typhoid and cholera.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) reports a 220 per cent increase in suspected cholera cases in Nigeria in 2024.
With Nigeria’s population exceeding 200 million, only about two-thirds have access to clean drinking water services despite the country’s abundant water resources.
Analysts argue that beyond contributing to waterborne diseases, the lack of potable water has consistently affected school attendance and performance, especially in rural areas and urban suburbs.
The impact is particularly severe for girls, who are often responsible for fetching water.
Analysts argue that this could be a contributing factor to the high number of girls out of school in Nigeria, which UNICEF reports as 7.6 million girls.
The importance of potable water is undeniable, as highlighted in the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6, which aims to ensure universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all by 2030.
Achieving this will enhance public health, stimulate economic growth, improve education and social well-being and foster environmental sustainability.
Consequently, stakeholders and experts have emphasised the need for the government to allocate sufficient resources to ensure access to safe drinking water and sanitation, recognising them as fundamental human rights.
They assert that resources are necessary to address the acute shortage of water supply caused by ageing public water infrastructure, a shortage of essential water treatment chemicals such as alum and chlorine and an erratic power supply.
More so, international water politics cannot be go unheeded.
Report from the Global Water Forum indicates that water security has become a central feature of the global policy agenda.
“Climate change, population growth, and pollution are altering the distribution of water resources and the political control of these resources is becoming increasingly contested.
“These and other water security threats are a source of conflict not only within countries but across international boundaries.
“International water politics describes the interactions between governments, non-government organisations, researchers and other actors that determine how and whether water management issues are addressed,’’ the report said.
In Nigeria, reports indicate increasing budgetary allocations to the water sector to address the existing challenges, but stakeholders observe that many states still have aging water facilities, limiting the sector’s performance.
For instance, in the 2017 budget, the Federal Ministry of Water Resources received a total allocation of N92 billion, with N85.1 billion dedicated to capital expenditure.
In 2018, the allocation increased by 68.6 per cent, reaching N155.1 billion, with N147.2 billion designated for capital expenditure.
However, in 2019, the allocation dropped to N100.5 billion, but saw a slight increase in 2020 of 0.01 per cent to ₦100.6 billion. Since then, there has been a steady rise in the budget.
In 2023, President Bola Tinubu’s administration allocated N242.2 billion; in 2024, the allocation increased by 22.5 per cent to N296.64 billion.
In spite of these increases, analysts argue that significant gaps persist and access to safe water remains poor.
They claim the country has regressed, shifting from a public water supply system to one dominated by private and donor-funded solutions.
They lament that, even though over 60 per cent of these budgets have been allocated to capital projects over the years, and 90 per cent in the last three years, there has been no visible improvement in access to potable water across the country.
Although the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, highlighted the performance of the 2024 budget, stating that 214 water schemes had been completed nationwide and that dam construction was progressing, stakeholders maintain that access to water remains disproportionate to the sector’s allocations over the years.
They attribute the sector’s challenges largely to the push for water privatisation, compounded by the persistent erratic power supply and insufficient public accountability in managing water resources.
A water rights advocate, Mr Philip Jakpor, called for the suspension of water privatisation as it had failed in other parts of the world.
He argued that the government should instead focus on strengthening public water infrastructure through political commitment.
Jakpor, Executive Director of Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI), also urged greater focus on ensuring that the funds allocated to the sector each year are used for their intended purpose.
Similarly, Mr Chima Williams, Executive Director, Environmental Defenders Network, argued that despite Nigeria’s vast water resources, privatisation had made access more challenging for the people.
He said that many major waterworks were functioning below capacity and providing unreliable services, urging the government to take prompt action to prevent further deterioration of the sector.
Recently, a coalition of water justice organisations and the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE) presented a report titled “Dry Taps: A Damning Verdict on the State of Water Facilities in Nigeria.”
The report, a micro-analysis of water utilities across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones, utilised data from six states to assess the sector’s performance.
It observed that personal interests were hindering efficient public water services, alleging that government officials were sabotaging efforts to revive the sector for personal gain under the cover of privatisation.
Additionally, it noted that budgeted funds for the sector were either not released or failed to reflect in facility maintenance.
The report advised the government to invest in alternative energy sources such as windmills and solar technologies to ensure uninterrupted water supply.
Additionally, it emphasised the need for staff training, improved welfare and the recruitment of additional technical personnel to enhance operational efficiency in the sector.
Worthy of note, the 2025 budget reflects the government’s commitment to advancing water and sanitation projects, including completing ongoing dam and irrigation projects, expanding the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programme and scaling up flood and drought mitigation.
Stakeholders stress that the revival of public water infrastructure must remain a priority to ensure optimal performance.
