Lagos Water Corporation Refutes Privatisation Allegations

The Lagos Water Corporation has repudiated the petition to the Lagos State House of Assembly on the corporation’s purported privatisation plans, clarifying the petitioners have been misinformed.

In a statement obtained moments ago by Environment Africa, the LWC stated the allegations in the petition sent by the coalition of six civil society groups – the Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI), Citizens Free Service Forum (CFSF), the Environmental Defenders Network (EDEN), Child Health Organisation, New Life Community Care Initiative (NELCCI) and the Ecumenical Water Networks Africa/Blue Communities Africa (EWNA), to the Lagos State House of Assembly urging it to halt the privatization plans being implemented by Lagos Water Corporation are totally untrue.

The LWC made clarifications on the PPP Model, including that;

• The proposed plan is not Privatisations – which is the transfer of a business, industry, or service from public to private ownership and control. This is what the petition alleges, which is far from what the LWC is advocating.

 

• The LWC plan is Public-Private Partnership – which is a collaboration between government and private enterprise, on a large infrastructure projects whereby the private sector injects funds (finance), plan or execute

According to the statement by LWC, “The rationale behind the PPP initiative is to introduce private sector efficiency and investment while the Government maintains regulatory oversight and fairness. This is to support the government in delivering Water service to over 22million Lagos State population.

“The State Government cannot solely undertake all infrastructure projects in the State which are enormous and capital intensive. By involving private players, Lagos Water Corporation is aiming for scale, reliability, and sustainability”, remarked Engr Tijani.

“We’ve seen PPPs in the water sector succeed across Africa — in Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda, Morocco, Egypt, Malawi, among others. The cheering news for Lagos is that our own PPP initiative is yielding results, with the Akilo Waterworks rehabilitation now completed through the joint effort of the Lagos State Government and WaterAid, and set for commissioning by September 2025.”

Further providing context, the LWC helmsman disclosed that the stakeholder engagement on the Pilot Public-Private Partnership session was an all-inclusive session; with a blanket invitation to ensure all voices were heard.

However, the Corporate Accountability & Public Participation (CAPPA) declined the invitation, citing concerns over process and principle. CAPPA also noted that the meeting’s objectives conflict with its principles and that alternative models for water supply were excluded from the dialogue.

“Our aim is to continually build trust, educate the public, and align expectations around what a successful public-private partnership should look like in utilities such as water supply.”