The Federal Government on Monday expressed concern over the continuous failure of water utilities which delivered potable water to homes, offices and organisations in the country.
The Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, said this at a workshop for State Agencies and Utility governance management course for Commissioners of Water Resources, in Abuja.
The programme was organised by the National Urban Water Sector Reform Project office.
The minister said that apart from poor access to improved water sources, the sector was also confronted with poor quality water, inefficient service delivery and failing infrastructure.
According to him, in the urban areas, majority has resulted to self-help as the water utilities are not serving majority of the population.
Adamu said: “Access to piped water on premises that was 32 per cent in 1990 has declined to seven per cent in 2015.
“We need to think and work differently if we are going to close service gaps in water supply and sanitation and improve human development outcomes.”
According to him, after years of neglect, the development of inclusive low-cost sanitation solutions in urban and rural areas alike deserve to be considered among priorities.
He said interventions need to be coordinated across Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, health and in the nutrition sectors to help children reach their full potential in life.
The minister, who called for the establishment of a special fund to tackle water, sanitation and hygiene issues, also said his ministry had taken steps to address some of the challenges facing the sector.
He said such steps include the development of a National WASH Action Plan, which has set out a 13-year revitalisation strategy for the sector.
The minister said the plan also included an 18-month emergency phase and a five-year recovery plan.
He said: “It commits the Federal and state governments to take concrete actions under five themes comprising of governance, sustainability, sanitation, funding and financing and monitoring and evaluation.
“Also embedded in the Action Plan is the establishment of a National WASH Fund as a tool for promoting renewed Federal-State partnership and increased financial investment for a WASH with a view to measuring up to regional level of funding.
“I am happy to inform this gathering that the National WASH Action Plan was recently approved by the Federal Executive Council including the declaration of ‘state of emergency’ in the WASH sector.”
He said the declaration of state of emergency on the sector by the government would help reverse some of the negative trends in the sector.
According to him, the action by the Federal Government would lead to increased investment in the water and sanitation sector by the various tiers of government.
Adamu said: “I trust that the declaration of the state of emergency will change the narrative surrounding the sector and set the stage for a reversal of current trends under the guidance of the National WASH Action Plan.
“This declaration seeks to put the full weight of the Federal Government behind addressing the sector’s shortcomings and challenges.
“The declaration of State of Emergency in the WASH sector indicates the that government has the political will to improve the sector, that is the number one signal, secondly what would follow is we expect increase investment in the water and sanitation sector by the various tiers of government.”
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