Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has warned the Lagos State Government against plans that could lead to the concession of parts of the state’s public water infrastructure, saying the move may make access to affordable water more difficult for residents.
The organisation’s concerns followed the state government’s signing of a one-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) and Naston Engineering Nigeria Limited to develop a water infrastructure programme within the Lekki Concession Area.
Under the proposed arrangement, the first phase will involve constructing a transmission pipeline beneath the Lagos Lagoon into the Lekki area, while the second phase will focus on distribution, metering and last-mile connections.
CAPPA said the agreement could eventually lead to private control over important aspects of water supply, including distribution, tariffs, metering and household access.
The organisation also questioned the transparency surrounding the project, saying the public has not been given access to the full MoU, terms of reference or details of consultations with affected communities.
“The government is already discussing tariffs and a concession while the public remains shut out,” CAPPA said.
The group argued that placing water infrastructure under private control could put commercial interests ahead of the needs of low-income households and other vulnerable residents.
CAPPA maintained that Lagos has the resources to invest directly in expanding and maintaining its public water system instead of relying on private concessions.
Its Water Programme Officer, Holiness Segun-Olufemi, accused successive administrations of failing to properly fund and expand the state’s water infrastructure.
“Allowing a public institution to deteriorate and then presenting private control as its rescue is dishonest.”
CAPPA also opposed the planned expansion of prepaid water meters, warning that households could lose access to water once their prepaid credit runs out.
“For a resource essential to human life, sanitation, and public health, automated disconnections are fundamentally exclusionary.”
The organisation compared the proposed water concession with Nigeria’s electricity privatisation experience, arguing that consumers have continued to face high costs, metering problems and unreliable services despite increased private sector involvement.
CAPPA also cited complaints from residents in parts of Lagos, including Akilo and Baruwa, where it said prepaid meters had reportedly been introduced. According to the organisation, some residents complained about intermittent supply, low pressure, delays in activating purchased units and discrepancies between payments and water received.
The group said some households in Baruwa reportedly spend up to N60,000 monthly on water, while also alleging problems including dirty water, prolonged outages and inadequate complaint channels.
CAPPA has therefore called on the Lagos State Government to halt further steps towards concessioning the water system and suspend the expansion of prepaid metering.
It also demanded the publication of the CHEC-Naston MoU and called for a fully funded public plan to rehabilitate treatment plants, pipelines, reservoirs and distribution networks.
The organisation further urged the government to guarantee every household access to a basic quantity of water and encouraged residents, civil society groups, labour unions, journalists and other stakeholders to demand greater accountability.
CAPPA warned that any concession agreement could bind the state for decades and argued that investment in Lagos’ water sector should strengthen the Lagos Water Corporation rather than create opportunities for private profit from an essential public service.
Source: Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA).
