Today March 22nd is “World Water Day” and it is on record that Water is the essential building block of life. Thus, it is much more than just essential to quench thirst or protect health; water is vital for creating jobs and supporting economic, social, and human development. Researches has it that there are over 663 million people living without a safe water supply close to home and to meet demands spend countless hours on ques or trekking to distant sources to get portable water. In worse cases, commuters are unavoidably exposed to struggling to cope with the health impacts of using contaminated water.
As the world mark this year water day, we at the Kogi State ministry of rural development reiterate our commitment to rural water enhancement via focus resuscitation and further sensitization on wastewater management. We shall make efforts on ways to reduce and reuse water as over 80% of all the wastewater from our homes, industries, factories and agricultural activities flows back to nature and by implication pollutes the environment and losing valuable nutrients cum other recoverable materials.
We need to improve the collection and treatment of wastewater and safely reuse it. At the same time, we need to reduce the quantity and pollution load of the wastewater we produce, to help protect the environment and our water resources. The government of his excellency Alhaji Yahaya Bello is more than ready to deliver good governance to the people of Kogi State via the new direction it is anchored upon and I shall not deter on my promises of bringing my best to bear in serving the state during my oath of office.
The UN Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) point six(6) is “ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by year 2030” and this includes a target to reduce the proportion of untreated wastewater and increase water recycling for a safe reuse. Kogi State shall not be an exception in working towards this very goal. Instead, we shall set the standard for other states to emulate.
Lastly, over eighty percent(80%) of the wastewater generated by society flows back into the ecosystem without being treated or reused (Sato et al, 2013). Sadly, about 1.8 billion people use a source of drinking water already contaminated with faeces and this puts them at risk of contracting cholera, dysentery, typhoid and polio. Therefore, we shall not deter on our resolve to completely overhaul rural water availability vis-a-vis resuscitation, renovation, construction and fast tracking of boreholes for our rural communities.
In this regards, rural water supply scheme embarked and constructed by the Kogi State ministry of rural development so far within the 3 senatorial districts are namely as follows;
1. Zango-Daji in Adavi LGA, 2. Abobo in Adavi LGA, 3. Isanlu in Yagba East LGA, 4. Okula Alloma in Ofu LGA , 5. Odidoko in Olamaboro LGA, 6. Resuscitation in Aja Agwu in Dekina LGA and 7. Resuscitation in Abejukolo Egume rural water supply. They have all been completed and awaiting commissioning this month by the special grace of God.
– Hon Enema Paul,
Honorable Commissioner,
Kogi State Ministry of Rural Development
