United Nations human
rights expert, Léo Heller, on Thursday, called for increased funding for water
and sanitation in the 2017 budget to address the needs of 21 million residents
of Lagos.
Heller, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights to
water and sanitation, commented on the budget, after it was presented by Gov.
Akinwumi Ambode to the Lagos House of Assembly, UN Secretary-General’s office
said.According to him, Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city, continues to grow while access
to basic services could dwindle.
He stated that the Government reports showed high
deficits in the sector, “representing clearly unacceptable conditions for
millions of the megacity’s residents”.
Heller said the annual budget discussion was a
chance for the city to take more actions in providing water and sanitation to
the people.
He also expressed concerns over the high numbers of
vulnerable people.
“There is no question that the city’s water and
sanitation sector has deteriorated to this point because of the way it has been
managed for many years.”
The Special Rapporteur also presented some
alternative solutions to the problem for the State Government to consider.
His suggestions include increasing the effectiveness of the public service provider,
adopting necessary financing schemes, and reducing water losses.
“For more than a decade, the Government has adopted
a hard-line policy according to which the solution would seem to only attract
private capital, notably via public-private partnerships (PPPs).
“Numerous civil society groups have urged the
Government to guarantee their right to participate in these processes,” Heller
said.
He added that the key to an adequate solution is a
participatory process.
According to him, the water and sanitation situation
continues to worsen as the population of Lagos increases.
He added that the resources have become scarce, with
an estimated 10 per cent of the population having access to water supplied by
the State water board.
Heller said residents have also been reported
drilling their own boreholes, in hopes to get some water, causing various
environmental and health issues, particularly contaminated water consumption.
The Special Rapporteur has reached out to the Nigerian
Government earlier this year, and is still waiting for it to provide an update
on the water and sanitation issue, the statement said.
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