Some residents of Jakande Ilasan community in Lagos have lamented the scarcity of water in their neighbourhood, saying they go through a lot to get potable water.
Most of them said they usually buy water and when they are financially incapacitated, it is always hard for them to get any source of water.
The residents spoke with our reporter on the sidelines of the commissioning and donation of a borehole to the deprived community by The Love Water Project, a humanitarian organisation that provides clean water solutions to families and communities in need.
According to Naomi Alabi the project founder, “this borehole will provide not just any water, but will give the community especially Women access to clean, clear and safe water. This will create lasting community health and sustain the growth and development of the residents.”
She said under the “Clean Water is a Human Right” campaign, more disadvantaged communities across 36 states of Nigeria will be identified and provided with access to clean water.
One of the residents, Mrs. Aduke Jakande, said, “I am very glad with this water project because we didn’t have water here. Even to fetch water, we suffer to see water. We used to buy water and fetch from wells but the well is not clean. To even see water to buy, we sweat before we see water.”
Another resident, Asia Usman, a mother of four said, “We have been suffering from absence of clean water for years. A gallon of water costs N120. Sometimes we would not have money to buy water. We wait for rain before we get water. I used to come. If anyone can help us, we will be happy.”
In Nigeria, one out of five deaths in children under age five is due to complications from unclean water, including diseases like cholera. Unsafe water can also lead to infectious diseases and the transmission of parasites.
