Assessment of Public Involvement in Urban Water Supply: Lessons from Ibadan City Sector

Abstract

In many countries around the world, including Nigeria, access to potable water has become an illusion. This paper examined the existing situation of Eleyele and Asejire public Waterworks, reservoirs and water pumping stations in Ibadan. Both secondary and primary information were obtained for this study. Secondary information was obtained from the State Water Corporation and Interview guide was prepared and administered on the head of operation to source primary information. Findings showed that all waterworks, booster and pumping stations have inadequate power supply, inadequacy of chemicals and other important materials for water treatment at treatment plants, frequent damage to water pipes by road construction companies, insufficient and incompetent manpower consequently affecting their performance. The water corporation has about 35,000 customers but less than 2,000 (5.9%) currently have water supply. The water corporation metered public piped water for only 0.7% of the consumers. Government annual monetary allocation between 2010 and 2014 revealed steady increase in the financial commitment to water production in the State. Residential buildings paid N65.80 per meter cubic (M3) of water, religious buildings pay N62.05, industrial and commercial pay N125.00 and N100.00 per M3 of water respectively while areas without meter were categorised into high-density areas pay N1000.00 and low-density areas pay N2000.00 per unit of building. Residents that have access to the public piped water complain of irregular supplies and unhappy to pay for water consumed. The study suggests adequate provision of uninterrupted power supply through replacement of obsolete equipment and pipes, regular supply of adequate purification materials and total avoidance of pipe leakages, proper urban watershed management by appropriate government agency such as the Bureau for Physical Planning and Urban Development to minimise siltation in dams and full implementation of the city master plan.