Lagos to revive Akilo water works, signs agreement
Lagos Water Corporation MD, Mukhtaar Tijani and the Country Manager of WaterAid, Evelyn Mere, during the contract signing ceremony in Lagos.
Lagos to revive Akilo water works, signs agreement.
• This signing, a strategic shift to interventions that serve large groups of people with water.
Lagos State Water Corporation (LASWARCO) has signed an agreement with WaterAid to rehabilitate the defunct Akilo Micro Waterworks scheme to serve portable water to communities in the Ifako-Ijaiye area.
The contract signing and awards ceremony took place at the corporation’s office in Ijora on Thursday, February 13, 2025.
The project, facilitated by WaterAide with the support of Armani Beauty, was initially constructed in 2012 as one of the 18 micro waterworks in Lagos.
With the signing of the contract, the Managing Director of Lagos Water Corporation, Mukhtaar Tijani, said the facility, when completed, will serve over 100,000 households in the area.
“We acknowledge the importance of this project. There have been baseline and household studies carried out around Akilo before we arrived at the contractor that will be implementing this waterworks project, which will benefit 100,000 residents,” the corporation boss said.
He disclosed that the project’s contractor, Rigmars Projects Limited, will move to the site as soon as part payment is made, adding that the project will be completed within six months.
Also speaking at the event, Evelyn Mere, the Country Director of WaterAid Nigeria, said the possibility of bringing the project to life through the collaborative efforts WaterAid and LASWARCO was thoroughly reviewed “from the technical assessment to the finalization of the procurement process.”
Emphasising the importance of clean potable water, Mere said, “The huge burden of lack of access to safely managed water, sanitation, and hygiene services impacts heavily on health,” adding that “about 90% of deaths caused by diarrheal diseases are linked to unsafe water, poor sanitation, and hygiene.”
“WaterAid is making a strategic shift to interventions that serve large groups of people. Hence, this contract signing, and awards event is enabling us achieve this strategic objective,” she said.
In his speech, the Managing Director of Rigmars Projects Limited, Nwankwo Chimechefolam, thanked LASWARCO and WaterAid for the opportunity to work on the project and assured them of its quality and timely delivery.
Representatives from the Lagos Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, the Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission, and the Lagos State Waste Management Office attended the contract signing ceremony.
