Ayodele Olalere
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, on Wednesday, assured Lagosians that his administration was committed to providing sustainable safe water to residents of the state.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by his Deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, at the second edition of Lagos International Water Conference held at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, with the theme ‘Water Security and
Investment Opportunities in Megacities: A case of Lagos State’, said the state government is poised bridge the gap between daily water demand and supply in the State, and harness the investment opportunities in the water sector.
“The Lagos State Water Supply Master Plan estimates daily water demand in the city at 540 million gallons per day (MGD) but production by the Lagos State Water Corporation (LSWC) stands at 210 MGD. This shows a clear deficit of over 300MGD, which translates to less than 40% access to clean and safe water.
As a government, we are not oblivious of this gap and its consequences on the health of our populace. In order to close this gap.”
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The governor said the Adiyan, Iju and Akute water facilities will soon begin to function properly as the state government has committed resources to ensuring adequate water is supplied to Lagosians.
“I toured the Lagos Water Corporation Facilities at Adiyan, Iju and Akute at the inception of my administration.
“We have expended resources on these facilities and I am happy to tell you that the Adiyan II plant that will bring additional 70 MGD to the already existing water capacity will soon become operational.
“We remain dedicated to our goal of becoming a global point of reference in the provision of sustainable safe water and
sanitation for our increasing population. As a demonstration of our commitment to affordable and sustainable clean water supply, we have signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding with WaterAid on capacity building for improved regulation and expansion of clean water access,” he said.
He added though there were challenges to providing safe water for the people but
“We are propelled by our concern for the wellbeing of our people to make the water sector economically viable”.
He added the state government “have been able to curb unwholesome water production and indiscriminate drilling of boreholes, which is a major contributor to lower aquifier and flooding.”
In her address, the Executive Secretary, Lagos Water Regulatory Commission, Mrs Funke Adepoju said the conference was ‘geared at stimulating ideas for the advancement of this all-important sector, in line with the Health and Environment pillar of this administration’s T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda.
“Water, no doubt, is indispensable to human existence; its security and access to inhabitants of a State like Lagos, which has a surging population of over 24 million people and a projected annual growth rate of 3.2% surely is of critical concern and surely demands the attention of all.
The present administration of Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwoolu has shown dogged determination to ensure that residents do not continue to lack access to potable water supply.
Indeed, the resolution of the multifarious challenges confronting the water and wastewater management sector in Lagos requires a committed and deliberate approach in delivering the ideals of SDG-6 to Lagosians.
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Achieving water security means that we must protect vulnerable water ecosystems, mitigate the impacts of water-related hazards such as floods and droughts, safeguard access to water functions and services and manage water resources in an integrated and equitable manner” she said.
She added:”The Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission (LASWARCO) is currently working on launching a program that we hope will catalyze performance across the water systems value chain using a robust and tailored Monitoring and Evaluation framework with in-built systems and indicators towards significant progress in achieving scalable household water security for Lagosians by the Year 2030 to be called RAP4SDG (Regulatory Assessment Programme for Sustainable Development Goal 6.1).
The Lagos State government is poised to saving and protecting its water resource as well as ensuring accessibility and affordability for Lagosians.”
She advocated for ‘relevant policies, legal, regulatory and institutional framework, funding for investment in critical WASH infrastructure; Improvement of the WASH Sector governance, addressing environmental concerns to minimize pollution of our water sources,
cost reflective water tariffs, and enhancement and improvement of information dissemination and promotion of water conservation practices and technologies by water users.
She urged the government to “review the WASH policy, legal and regulatory frameworks to align with the current thinking of opening up the sector for private financing and investments, create an avenue through which government and private sector investors can deliberate on partnerships, corporate sponsorship, and wastewater operations and management in the State, as well as “sustained political will and support to WASH sector reforms.
