The Federal Government has outlined plans to build additional dams to guarantee a sufficient supply of clean water and to facilitate irrigation nationwide.
Adeniyi Saheed Aremu, the Managing Director of the Lower Niger River Basin Development Authority (LNRBDA) in Kwara State, disclosed this information on Thursday in Ilorin.
Aremu made this announcement during the 42nd Media Parliament organized by the Kwara State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in the state capital.
At the event themed “Ending Perennial Acute Water Shortage in Our Society,” Aremu said the resolve to build additional water dams was in line with the deliverables and priorities of President Bola Tinubu-led administration.
He explained that the water facilities, when constructed, would be made available for different usage of the people as enunciated in the key performance index of the present government.
“As part of the presidential deliverables and priorities of this present government, we have it as our focus to construct as many dams as possible, and to have irrigation facilities so that water will be available for several uses. And that is one of the key performance indexes, that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has rolled out.
“So, everywhere, we try as much as possible to get water available. Where we cannot have hand pumps, we try to have solar or motorized boreholes. We have even changed our tanks to plastic tanks for longevity of usage”, Aremu said.
The Managing Director of LNRBDA highlighted that under his leadership, the authority has successfully rehabilitated various water works to support state governments. He specifically mentioned that the raw water in Asa-Dam has the capacity to cater to the water needs of Ilorin residents.
Additionally, the authority has chosen to incorporate solar systems into newly constructed water facilities in communities. This decision aims to alleviate the challenges faced by residents who may struggle to afford diesel or petroleum to power generators for water supply.
Addressing the water scarcity issue, the Chairman of NUJ in the state, Abdullateef Ahmed, expressed concern about the daily challenges people face in accessing clean water. He lamented that many residents are compelled to cover long distances before gaining access to a reliable source of clean and safe water.
