Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria, was promised a lifeline in the form of Greater Abuja Water Supply Project, which was aimed at providing clean drinking water to its growing population. The project, funded by the Federal Capital Territory Authority (FCTA), has been delayed, pushing the city’s 3.8 million inhabitants into despair. From patronising water vendors to improvised wells, a quiet revolution has emerged as residents navigate the arduous path to secure a basic human necessity. In this report, Dataphyte delved into the reasons behind the project’s delay and the heart-wrenching struggles faced by the affected residents.
In the Jahi district of Abuja, Ms Endurance Emeka lamented how she had lived with having to buy water from vendors popularly known as Mairuwa for over five years. Her residence is roughly half an hour long from Nigeria’s seat of power, Aso Rock.
“We do not have regular water in this area because we do not have a direct connection with the Water Board,” she said. She told Dataphyte that she either got water from vendors or from a man managing supply in that area. The man responsible for managing water services at the FCT Water Board collects N2000 every month from each resident . Despite the payment, water is hardly available.
The man, Obinna, runs an unregistered company named Aquatic Utilities FCT Abuja, which he uses to collect water supply levies from residents of Jahi 1.
General Manager, FCT Water Board, Mr Tahueed Amusan, denied having any arrangement with him.
“These companies and many like them are fraudulent. They have no connection with the water board,” Amusan said.
It is unclear how and where he gets the water from. However, the FCT Water Board confirmed to Dataphyte that Obinna’s connection was illegal. The reporter found that water pipes were laid inside the drainages.
“We don’t know the relationship between him and the water board. All we know is that we pay him money and he gives us water, even though it is not always regular,” Endurance said, while referring to Obinna.
A receipt of payment seen by Dataphyte shows that Obinna charges N2,000 from residents monthly.
It was a moment of lamentation at a primary healthcare centre named Jahi One Clinic, where Zainab Suleiman, a nurse, expressed her frustration over lack of water in the clinic. It is her second year working in that clinic, but the condition has been the same since she started working there.
“There are many patients that come here because of water-borne-related diseases. It is just that their cases are not always severe. On a daily basis, we take in between two and three patients that are down with these diseases.”
She also said, “When the patients are tested, we see that they have typhoid because of the unhygienic water they take.”
Not only do residents of Jahi lack access to potable water, the government-owned health centre does not also have. “We usually buy water from Mairuwa,” Zainab said.
Zainab noted that the health centre spent at least N2,000 to get water daily, yet this would not be enough to meet the needs of the clinic. On average, about N60,000 is spent on water monthly, which is mostly funded by the head of the clinic from her personal account. According to Zainab, the Drug Revolving Fund (DRF) the clinic was getting did not cater for its entire need.
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Water access, a major problem
Access to potable water is a mirage in many rural communities within the FCT. This questions the possibility of achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Six, which aims to ensure water and sanitation availability for all by 2030.
At least 60 million Nigerians drink contaminated water, which is generally linked to several deadly diseases, including typhoid and cholera.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has noted that 73 percent of diarrheal diseases are associated with poor access to potable water, which is predominant in impoverished communities.
Another settlement that is close to the city centre is Dakin-Biu, a settlement just a few metres away from the FCT High Court in Jabi, where Ifeoma Obi has been living for over 15 years.
Ifeoma has been patronising water vendors all through her stay. She said a man who claimed to work for the water board recently asked each room to pay N30,000 in order to be connected to the water board. She explained her struggles for water, usually in the morning when she also needed to go to work and take her kids to school.
“In the morning, when you want to go to work, if you don’t see mairuwa, you borrow water from your neighbour, and you return it when you come back in the evening,” she said.
Ifeoma, a mother of two, said she sometimes would not take her bath when going to work.
“Yes, severally. There are times my children and I do not take our bath before going out in the morning,” she claimed.
For residents of Dakin Biu community, typhoid and cholera seem to be ‘normal’ diseases they grapple with, according to Ifeoma. The community could be regarded as one of the dirtiest in the FCT, as stinking, stagnant water and dirt were seen everywhere.
The failing $470 million project
In 2017, the former Minister of Finance, Ms Kemi Adeosun, and the President of the China Eximbank, Mr Liu Liange, signed loan agreements to initiate the Greater Abuja Water Supply Project in the FCT. However, six years have elapsed since the agreement was made, and regrettably, the project remains unfinished.
Director of Engineering Services at the FCDA, Engineer Ferdinand Obiora Ezeoha, stated that the $470 million project was to be funded 81 percent by the China Exim Bank and 19 percent by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
He told Dataphyte that the project was 56 percent complete, and the primary cause of this delay lay with the Federal Government, which had not fulfilled its commitment to provide the required counterpart funding of 19 percent.
As a result, many residents of the nation’s capital are still deprived of access to potable water, despite the initial promise made during the project’s conception.
Ezeoha told Dataphyte that although the project was awarded in March 2017, its initiation was postponed until May 2021. The absence of fund disbursements from the Federal Government led to a corresponding hold on releases from the Exim Bank, he noted.
“If there is no disbursement of funds from the Federal Government, there will be no release from the Exim Bank either. So that was responsible for the delay in the completion of the project,” Ezeoha stated.
He noted that the Federal Government had thus far disbursed $36.8 million for the project, whereas the China Exim Bank had provided $178.6 million in funds.
N6.9bn paid to CGC Nigeria Ltd
However, details from the Open Treasury Portal of the Federal Government show that a sum of N6.9 billion had been paid to CGC Nigeria Limited to carry out this project.
The ambitious Greater Abuja Water Supply Project was envisioned to address the pressing water needs of the city. Its goal was to extend access to safe and clean drinking water to 33 districts, promising a transformative impact on the lives of Abuja’s residents.
The districts are categorised into Loops 1, 2, 5 and 6
| Loop | Districts |
| Loop 1 | Bunkoro, Gwarinpa 1 & 2, Nbora, Karmp, Dape, Kafe and Wupa including other districts such as Institution and Research Districts. |
| Loop 2 | Katampe, Mabushi, Utako, Wuye, Dakibiyu, Jabi, Kado, Jahi and Katampe Extension including Other Districts such as Kukwaba Loop |
| Loop 5 | Durumi, Gudu, Dutse, Gaduwa, Duboyi and Kaura. |
| Loop 6 | Galadimawa, Dakwo, Lokogoma, Wumba, Saraji, Kabusa, Okanje, and Pyakassa including other districts such as Industrial Area II (ATV). |
Other Phase IV (North) Districts to be covered included Industrial Area 1 and Extension, Karsana North, Karsana South, Karsana East, Karsana West, Idogwari, Ido-sabo, Sabon Gida, Kodo, Kagini, Abuja West Central District, Gwagwa, Kaba, Bakusa and Filindabo.
By establishing efficient water distribution networks and strict adherence to the stringent water quality standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO), the project aims to elevate hygiene levels and significantly reduce the occurrence of waterborne diseases.
In 2021, Nigeria experienced a devastating cholera outbreak that had a significant impact on the nation. The outbreak spread across 33 states and the FCT, affecting numerous communities.
According to the data from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), there were a staggering 111,062 suspected cholera cases and 3,604 deaths reported in the country during that year. Among the most affected were children between the ages of five and 14 facing the brunt of the outbreak’s severity.
The situation was particularly concerning in the FCT, with 1,286 suspected cases recorded, leading to the tragic loss of approximately 77 lives.
Abuja, city of contrasts
On one side, some wealthy residents live in gated communities and drive expensive cars. On the other side, the poor live in slums and struggle to make ends meet.
The social dualism is evident in how water is distributed in the city. The wealthy residents have access to clean, potable water, while the poor masses rely on water vendors or dig wells in their backyards.
This disparity has a number of consequences for the poor, according to experts. They are more likely to get sick from waterborne diseases, and they have to spend a significant amount of their income on water. This can make it difficult to afford other basic necessities such as food and shelter.
The social dualism in Abuja reflects Nigeria’s wider social and economic inequalities. The wealthy elite have benefited from the country’s economic growth, while the poor have been left behind. This has created a society where there is a widening gap between the rich and the poor.
In Lugbe, it’s one house, one borehole
In Lugbe, a district under the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), boreholes are sunk indiscriminately as it is yet to be connected to the FCT water.
Boreholes are wells that are drilled into the ground to access groundwater. They are a convenient way of getting water, but they can also have a devastating impact on the environment.
A CCTV installer, Mr Lawrence Anyeku, lives in the Kapwa area of Lugbe. He told Dataphyte that residents were suffering, noting that his landlord had a 1,000-litre GeePee tank in a compound of 15 flats.
“See, it is not even funny here. I live in a house with a thousand litres of GeePee tank for 15 flats. Once there is no power supply, a full tank lasts just for a maximum of 30 minutes. If there is water board in Lugbe, we will not be suffering in the hands of our landlord, who just got this small tank for a compound with 15 flats,” Lawrence said.
In Lugbe, just like in many other parts of Abuja, boreholes are sunk without adherence to regulations. As a result, they are often drilled too close to each other, thereby depleting the water table.
According to a geologist, Mr Joshua Anyaeji, the water table could be defined as the level below which the ground is saturated with water. When the water table drops, it could lead to water shortages, especially during dry seasons, he added.
The boreholes also contaminated the groundwater, Joshua said. This happened because they were not properly constructed or maintained. As a result, they allowed pollutants from septic tanks, landfills, and other sources to seep into the groundwater.
Lugbe is one of the closest suburbs to the city centre. It is also strategic because of its proximity to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport. It is also home to one of the federal housing authority quarters.
Residents of Lugbe groan because they depend on boreholes and wells, often without proper groundwater resources to live on. This has given rise to the menace of poor environment and open defecation.
Groundwater provides almost half of all drinking water worldwide. It constitutes about 40 percent of water for irrigated agriculture and about a third of the water supply required for industrial purposes, experts say.
Groundwater also sustains ecosystems, maintains the base flow of rivers, and prevents land subsidence and seawater intrusion. It is an important part of climate change adaptation and is often regarded as a solution for people without access to safe water.
Residents in the satellite town of Kuje also suffer the same fate. The only available water for them is that from water vendors or private homes where there are boreholes. A mother of less than a year-old -baby, Ms Deborah Sunday, lamented how she trekked several kilometres from her home in search of water.
“We are really suffering here for lack of water. I must walk a long distance backing my baby when looking for water. I can only go once because I am often tired when I return. The water is not always enough for me, my baby, and my husband,” she lamented.
In the Gaube village of Kuje, Mr Iliasu Haruna, the village head, also known as Mianguwa, expressed his frustration at the water situation. Haruna has been the village chief for 33 years, and the situation has just been the same.
In Gaube, the only hand-pump water machine in his community has developed a fault and is now used to sun-dry food. To Haruna, this was a serious problem. The lack of access to clean water was a health hazard and a major inconvenience.
“Our women in the community have to spend hours every day fetching water, and they often have to wait in long queues. The children also have to walk long distances to get water, and this takes away from their time for school and play,”
Abuja is located in the Savanah region of the country, where rainfall is minimal. This means groundwater and surface water resources (streams, rivers, and lakes) are relatively low.
To compound matters, the limited supply of water resources is compounded by the menace of pollution.
The ever-increasing population in the FCT means that more pressure will be put on the already declining groundwater sources since every home depends on boreholes and wells for domestic water supply while considering the rivers and streams as waste dumpsites.
NAFDAC says not in charge
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is in charge of policing the production, distribution, sale, and use of food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, medical equipment, chemicals, and packaged water in Nigeria.
Spokesperson of the government agency, Mr Sayo Akintola, told Dataphyte that the agency’s mandate lay in overseeing the commercial aspects of water production, and not individual homes.
“A government agency needs to be responsible for ensuring water hygiene in individual homes, including setting the necessary criteria and guidelines for their compliance, as well as determining the appropriate distance between boreholes,” Akinyola noted.
By implication, boreholes are not regulated in Africa’s most populous nation.
This story was produced with support from the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) and Centre for International Private Enterprise (CIPE)