Nigeria’s Minister for Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, has called for urgent measures to address Africa’s water security and sanitation challenges, citing slow progress toward the Africa Water Vision 2025.
Utsev made the appeal at the African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW) West Africa sub-regional meeting and consultation on the post-2025 Africa Water Vision and Policy in Abuja on Tuesday, March 18, 2025.
Represented by the Permanent Secretary, Mr Richard Pheelangwah, the minister expressed concerns over the region’s water and sanitation situation.
“Africa remains off track in realising the Africa Water Vision 2025,” he stated, citing data from the 2024 Water Sector and Sanitation Monitoring and Reporting (WASSMO) report.
According to Utsev, the report revealed that financing for the water and sanitation sector is inadequate, with heavy reliance on Official Development Assistance (ODA), making sustainable funding difficult.
He further noted that 800 million people in Africa lacked access to safely managed sanitation services, while over 400 million people lacked access to safely managed drinking water.
“Open defecation remains a significant challenge, with 23 per cent of the population still practicing it, far from the five per cent target by 2025.
“The situation calls for action to inject new approaches into existing strategies to attract commensurate financial resources to the water and sanitation sector at all levels,” he said.
Utsev also warned that the continent’s growing population and climate change would further strain water resources.
“Africa’s population is expected to exceed 2.5 billion by 2050, and with an expected 1.5°C rise in average temperature, we face an increase in water-related natural disasters and economic losses,” he said.
The minister reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to strengthening water security, improving sanitation and hygiene, and enhancing food security.
He outlined several key projects being implemented by his ministry to improve livelihoods, promote sustainable water management, and maximise socio-economic development.
He also announced plans for a National WASH Policy, developed in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Environment and other stakeholders, to align Nigeria’s water and sanitation efforts with global standards.
The minister commended AMCOW, the AU Commission, the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the African Development Bank (AfDB) for leading the development of the post-2025 Africa Water Vision and Policy.
He urged stakeholders to align the new framework with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the African Union Agenda 2063, ensuring regional cooperation and better access to funding.
Earlier, the Executive Secretary of AMCOW, Dr Rashid Mbaziira, stressed the need for increased investment in Africa’s water sector as the continent reviewed progress on the Africa Water Vision 2025.
He noted that the initial vision, established in 2000, aimed for equitable water resource utilisation to drive development, reduce poverty, and protect the environment.
“Now we are in 2025, which was the target year for achieving that vision. We have assessed what we have accomplished, what remains unachieved, and what needs to be prioritised moving forward.
“Ultimately, water is key to our socio-economic development,” Mbaziira stated.
He explained that in 2022, African water ministers decided to evaluate progress and use the findings as a foundation for shaping a new vision aligned with the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
He highlighted that the meeting provided a platform for West Africa to identify its regional priorities, which would be integrated with insights from other African regions to develop a post-2025 Africa Water Vision.
“One of the key challenges that has emerged is insufficient financing for the water sector, which has limited its contribution to development. Addressing this gap will be crucial in shaping the way forward,” he added.
Goodwill messages were delivered by representatives of AfDB, the AU Commission, Chairman of the Technical Advisory Committee and others.
Founded in 2002, AMCOW promotes cooperation, security, economic development, and poverty eradication through effective water resource management and supply services.
In 2008, at the 11th ordinary session of the African Union (AU) Assembly in Sharm el-Sheikh, Heads of State and Government of the AU agreed on commitments to accelerate the achievement of water and sanitation goals in Africa.
AMCOW was mandated to develop and follow up an implementation strategy for these commitments.
By Tosin Kolade