FG constructs 9,198 sanitation facilities in 127 LGA – Minister
By Omeiza Bilal
The Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation says it constructed 9,198 sanitation facilities in 127 Local Government Areas across Nigeria.
The facilities are expected to serve 550,820 people in public places and institutions such as markets, motor parks, Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps, schools.
This is even as 117 Local Government Areas across the country are Open Defecation Free (ODF) while Jigawa State attained the State-wide ODF in Nigeria.
The Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Terlumun Utsev, who disclosed this at the 30th regular meeting of the National Council on Water Resources and Sanitation holding in Abuja noted that under the WASHNORM, access to basic drinking water stands at 67 per cent while access to basic sanitation services stands at 46 per cent.
“I am delighted to inform you that the Ministry has made tremendous progress in the Brown and Green Field Hydropower Development through PPPs. We have conclusively concessional some projects while still developing others through various PPP models.
“The Ministry in its bid to generally improve Sanitation in the country has carried out routine quarterly monitoring of major rivers and open water bodies in all the eight (8) Hydrological Areas (HA) in Nigeria and produced the Fourth Edition Report on Rivers and Open Water Bodies Monitoring for the country.
“Developed and launched the Nigerian Guidelines for Rural Drinking Water Quality Monitoring and Surveillance to provide for uncertainty in the quality of rural drinking water due to lack of routine monitoring and surveillance protocols and treatment of contaminated sources by local authorities. This is to ensure access to adequate safe drinking water for attaining and sustaining healthy living among the rural dwellers as it is a fundamental human right of all citizens;
“Developed and launched the Nigerian Roadmap for Water Quality Management to guide against pollution and contamination that threaten the quality of the nation’s water resources,” he said.
He said the ministry is also developing irrigable areas totaling over 15,000ha, which is nearing completion. This will be handed over to farmers by the end of the 3rd quarter of the year 2024.
“In order to transform and promote Irrigation Development towards Sustainable Food Production and Security for the greater socio-economic well-being of the nation in line with the present Administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the ministry proposes to channel all efforts towards achieving the target of developing 500,000ha of land by 2030. This will be achieved in collaboration with the Federal Department of Irrigation and Drainage, River Basin Development Authorities, States, LGA, and the Private Sector.”
He said the government will continue to support and strengthen the River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs) to improve on their performances in line with the targets set for them. We have developed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to assess the RBDAs nationwide. We have also introduced “Ministry Awards” for the top-performing River Basin Development Authority.
Declaring the event open the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), represented by the Acting Permanent Secretary, Mr Udo Samuel the Meeting in the past three days deliberated on a wide range of issues that speak to the Theme of the meeting; People, Planet and prosperity: Promoting Water Governance for National Food Security. The meeting is timely and crucial, as we seek to develop strategies and policies that will enhance water governance practices, practices, improve Water Resource Management, and increase agricultural productivity.
“The outcomes of our deliberations will have far-reaching implications for the future of our nation’s food security and overall development,” he said.
