Investigations
N65 Million Water Project Falls Short: Kwara Rural Communities Remain Thirsty
The issue of water scarcity is one of the headaches the people of this community battle with. We have a solar-powered borehole here.
On a sweltering July afternoon in Ijagbo, a community within Kwara State’s Oyun Local Government Area, the sky hung heavy with clouds poised to unleash a torrent of rain. But for Usman Adam, a resident of the small hamlet of Gaa Adamu, the looming downpour offered little comfort. His furrowed brow betrayed a deeper concern – the debilitating water shortage that had long plagued his hometown, leaving its residents in a state of perpetual thirst.
The lack of a dependable water source had turned life into a constant struggle, compelling residents of the community to undertake a grueling, miles-long trek in pursuit of potable water to meet their basic needs.
“The major problem in this community is that we suffer water scarcity a lot. Even though we have wells, we can’t even get enough water for daily survival. There is no water to drink, cook and even use the toilet,” Usman told SaharaReporters.
He continued: “The alternative we have is a good Samaritan, living about 30 miles away, who has a borehole in his house. However, it’s not every day we have access to fetch water in his house, sometimes, they won’t allow members of the community to fetch when they also don’t have water.”
A well at Gaa Adamu Community
With deep sincerity, Usman implored the government to provide their community with the precious gift of piped water, which would be a monumental blessing and a tremendous respite. He stressed that having a reliable piped water system would bring immense relief, significantly easing their daily struggles and vastly enhancing their overall well-being.
“In this village, we have two hamlets. I learned the other hamlet has one solar-powered borehole serving them, however, I’m not sure if it’s still working,” he concluded.
Jooro, a resident of a nearby community just a few meters from Usman’s, shared a similar tale of woe.
He recounted the struggles they had been facing due to the acute water scarcity, contrasting the good old days with the dire situation they now found themselves in.
He nostalgically remembered a time when access to water was not a challenge, but lamented how things had taken a turn for the worse, leaving them to suffer the consequences of this basic necessity.
He said, “The issue of water scarcity is one of the headaches the people of this community battle with. We have a solar-powered borehole here.
“However, the pumping machine generated a defect two years back, the repairer said he is going to fix it at the rate of 500,000 naira,” he added.
Faulty Borehole at Jooro Community
The escalating rate of inflation has made repairing the faulty pumping machine an unaffordable luxury for the people of Gaa Jooro, leaving them with no choice but to endure the suffering caused by the resulting water scarcity. The ever-increasing costs have turned what should be a simple fix into an insurmountable challenge for the rural community.
Jooro a resident of Gaa Jooro
“We have pleaded to the government several times to come and fix it for us, but all our pleas were in their deaf ears. So we have no other choice than to suffer,” Jooro said.
Faulty Solar Pumping Machine
The water scarcity in Jooro has forced residents to turn to unreliable sources to meet their daily needs. SaharaReporters discovered that the community relies heavily on seasonal rainwater and wells, which are often dry, especially during the dry season. As a result, residents are frequently left without access to water, making bathing a luxury for them.
“The rain is the surest and this may take like five months before it starts. There is always a restriction to fetch well water because there are only a few people that have it in this community,” Jooro’s wife lamented.
She continued: “Sometimes when we go to people’s houses to fetch water (well) with the hope that we can use it in doing chores to allow our students to go to school, they will send us away like we are not humans. This situation even made my children frustrated about going to school every morning.”
Jooro’s family
N65 Million Down the Drain, Yet no Potable Water
According to the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), 60 million Nigerians do not have access to drinking water. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) notes that contaminated water leads to diseases such as diarrhoea, which annually kills more than 70,000 children below the age of five.
To avoid a breakout of such in Oyun Local Government Area, Kwara Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq in 2020 awarded a contract worth 65 million naira to Seamface Global Solution for the rehabilitation of the Oyun water works.
This investment aimed to restore a reliable water supply to rural communities like Gaa Jooro and Gaa Adamu, addressing the long-standing issue of water scarcity.
Oyun Water work Ijagbo
A visit to the facility in July 2024 revealed that the project was complete. While the completion of the project earned praise from traditional leaders in Oyun, it failed to bring relief to several communities in the council which Gaa Jooro and Gaa Adamu are inclusive.
These communities remain cut off from access to potable water, forcing them to rely on rainfall and alternative sources. The state’s intervention, intended to alleviate water scarcity, has unfortunately not benefited these rural communities, leaving them to continue suffering from water shortages.
Despite the public funds committed to the project, residents of the communities are yet to derive the value for the money as they still scramble for water to meet their daily needs, even during the coronavirus pandemic four years ago.
Children Trend to Suffer the Most from Absence of Potable Water
The widespread lack of access to clean and potable water in numerous Nigerian households has been a significant factor in the prevalence of waterborne diseases, including cholera, typhoid, and many others, posing a major public health concern across the country.
According to UNICEF, children bear the brunt of this lack. It said, “While all can feel the impact of water scarcity, no one suffers more than the most vulnerable children. Children and families living in vulnerable communities face the double-edged sword of coping with high water scarcity levels while having the lowest water services, making access to sufficient water especially susceptible to climate shocks and extreme events.”
Over 29% of Nigerian children experience high or extremely high water vulnerability. This means that 3 out of 10 children in Nigeria do not drink safe water daily.
Government Keeps Mum
Despite numerous attempts, SaharaReporters was unable to obtain an official response from the state government regarding our findings. Honourable Usman Lade, the state commissioner of water resources, did not answer repeated phone calls and has yet to respond to multiple WhatsApp and direct messages seeking his comment on the matter.
This story was produced with support from the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under the Collaborative Media Engagement for Development Inclusivity and Accountability Project (CMEDIA) funded by the MacArthur Foundation
