Promoting Integrated Water Resources Management in South West Nigeria: the Need for Collaboration and Partnershippartnership
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Nigerian Journal of Technology (NIJOTECH) Vol. 34 No. 2, April 2015, pp. 414 – 420 Copyright© Faculty of Engineering, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, ISSN: 1115-8443 www.nijotech.com http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/njt.v34i2 .28 PROMOTING INTEGRATED WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT IN SOUTH WEST NIGERIA: THE NEED FOR COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIPPARTNERSHIP A. Sobowale 1*1*1* , J., J. K. Adewumi 222 and O. A. Bamgboye 333 111,1,,, 222 SOUTH WEST REGIONAL CENTRE FOR NATIONAL WATER RESOURCES CAPACITY BUILDING NETWORK , FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE , PMB 2240, ABEOKUTA 110001, NIGERIA. 333 NATIONAL WATER RESOURCES INSTITUTE , PMB 2309, KADUNA , NIGERIA. EEE-E---mailmail AddressAddresseseseses:: 1 [email protected], 222 [email protected] 333 [email protected] ABSTRACT ThisThisThis paper eelucidateslucidates the need to implement Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) in SSSouthSouth WWWestWest NigeriaNigeria.. At present, water related programmes in existing capacity building institutions ((CBIsCBIsCBIsCBIs)))) do not have IWRM and climate change adaptation in their synopsis; ttthisthis suggests tthehe need for curriculum review. Another observation was that many of the professionals in the water sectorsector organizations ((WSOsWSOsWSOs)))) are aging with none of these organizations having succession plansplans.. D. DevelopD evelopevelopinging and implementing succession plans require collaboration and partnership with CBIs in the regionregion;;;; ttthethehehe recent establishment of the National Water Resources CapacityCapacity Building NetwNetwNetworkNetw ork (NWRCBNet) in the country is timelytimely;;;; itititwillit will provide a platform for IWRM implementation and capacity building in the water sectorsector.... The south west regional center at the Federal UniveUniversityrsity of Agriculture, Abeokuta has been spear heading this vision and the results achieved so far in the south west region has been encouragingencouraging.... Keywords: Integrated Water Resources Management, Capacity Building, Water Sector Organizations, Nigeria 1.1.1. INTRODUCTION participatory planning and implementation process, The objective of sustainable water resources based on scientific knowledge, which brings together development is to make sure that adequate supply of stakeholders to determine how to meet society’s long- water of good quality and quantity are maintained for term needs for water and coastal resources while the entire population of the world, while preserving maintaining eco- system and biodiversity. IWRM helps the hydrological, biological, and chemical functions of to protect the environment, foster economic growth ecosystems, adopting human activities within the and sustainable agricultural development, promote capacity limits of nature, combating vectors of water democratic participation in governance, and improve related diseases and adapting to climate change [1, 2]. human health. Worldwide, water policy and In order to achieve the aforementioned, the multi- management are beginning to reflect the disciplinary nature of water resources development fundamentally interconnected nature of hydrological and management must be recognized, as well as the resources, and integrated water resources multi interest utilization of water resources for water management is emerging as an accepted alternative to supply and Sanitation, agriculture, industry and bio- the sector-by-sector, top-down management style that diversity etc. has yielded little results in the past. In Nigeria, the It is widely recognized that an integrated approach to concept of IWRM is still at infancy; there is a dearth of water resource development and management offers knowledge on the need to sustainably develop and the best means of reconciling competing demands manage the nation’s water resources. Most of the with supplies and a framework where effective water resources development project are funded by operational actions can be taken [3]. Integrated Water Government and are interventionist in nature, supply- Resources Management (IWRM) is therefore the way driven and many of them lack sustainability plans. forward if the world’s limited freshwater resources These are some of the reasons why such projects are must be managed in a sustainable manner [4, 5]. It is a short lived; the stakeholders are not carried along in * Corresponding Author, Tel: +234+234----806806806806----210210210210----1020102010201020 IIINTEGRATED WWWATER RRRESOURCES MMMANAGEMENT IIIN SSSOUTH WWWEST NNNIGERIA ::: CCCOLLABORATION AAAND PPPARTNERSHIP A. SobowaleSobowale,, et al the decision process, hence many of the water who should be responsible for what? This is the schemes fail shortly after commissioning. Consider the reason why many reforms implemented in the sector rural water supply schemes for example, several in the past has been short lived. The problem of abandoned borehole dot the landscape of south west inappropriate personnel in the water sector has been Nigeria, these could be seen as one travels along many perpetrated by the concept of on-the-job training; the rural feeder roads; also worth mentioning are the end result has always been square pegs in round Igbojaiye, Ilero, Ofiki I and II, Sepeteri, Ibarapa/Iseyin, holes. This concept further led to the establishment of Mokoloki, Asa, Iwo, Okuku, Itoikin, Igbonla, Oogi, training centers by the WSOs in order to make square Ipetu-Ijesha, Iwopin and Oke-Odan water projects. pegs to become round. Unfortunately, this concept of The objective of this paper is to elucidate the dire capacity building has not yielded the much desired need for IWRM in south west Nigeria and by extension efficiency in the sector; hence, the need for a change in the entire country and the role that capacity building strategy. institutions (CBIs) in the region have to play in fast In the past, capacity building has been viewed to be tracking capacity development in the water sector synonymous with infrastructural development, which organizations (WSOs) in the region. is the reason for the massive investment in the water sector at the early stages; however, without the right 2.2.2. THE NEED FOR IWRM CAPACITY BUILDING IN THE caliber of personnel to manage the numerous WATER SECTOR OF SOUTH WEST NIGERIA developments, one can only expect system failure or Since the handing over of governance by the colonial incessant breakdowns of water infrastructures that administration in 1960, the water sector in south west we now face in the region. Access to water is still very Nigeria experienced progress especially through the low in the region despite the huge available water Western Region Government when a number of rural resources, the rate of investment in the sector is and peri-urban water schemes were commissioned abysmal when compared with the population growth and functioned effectively for a period of time. But rate and the rapidly expanding built up areas that we since the intervention of the Military in the polity, the now have in south west Nigeria. The development of sector began to witness declining investment which the water resources for irrigation in the region is still led to low capacity utilization of existing water very low as most of the irrigation schemes developed schemes; this subsequently led to the closure of many in the past are grossly underutilized while some have of the water supply schemes. Attempts were later been abandoned. made to salvage the situation during the second With the advent of IWRM, the concept of capacity republic 1979 – 1983), but this was also short-lived by building has changed and the scope expanded. instability in governance. The management of these Capacity building is now seen as the process whereby schemes is 100% controlled by government, hence the a community equips itself to undertake the necessary frequency of low capacity utilization and lack of functions of governance and service provision in a sustainable investment in the sector. sustainable manner. The process of capacity building One of the problems of the water sector in south west must be aimed at both increasing access to resources Nigeria is that of low quality personnel especially in and to changing the power relationships between the the technical aspects. The dearth of key personnel parties involved. The "community" may be a local such as Water Engineers, Public Health Engineers or government, a village level committee or even a Environmental Engineers and other pertinent central government department or ministry. Capacity professionals in the sector and poor funding has building is not only constrained to officials and contributed to the very low system performance technicians but must also include the general witnessed all over the south western states of Nigeria. awareness of the local population regarding their These issues need to be addressed before a pragmatic services and development in general. Greater solution to all the problems can be achieved. It should understanding is needed of the dynamics and be noted that the water sector is multi-disciplinary in processes of capacity building and greater rigor is nature which cuts across professions like Engineering, needed in the planning, design and implementation of hydrogeology, hydrology, geography, meteorology, capacity building activities. Most "capacity building" chemistry, finance and accounting, administration, initiative in the region is carried out on a project by economics, law, sociology, public health, project basis as a "tack-on" to the main contract of environmental