By Junaidu Danladi
March 22 is celebrated as World Water Day. The history of the Day dates back to 1993, when the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring a should set aside to create global awareness on the important of water. Undoubtedly, water is a basic and necessity of life. Since the ancient period, water has played a significant role in the societal development. Achieving access to adquate and safe water is one of the goals of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The theme of 2026’s Day is “Where Water Flows, Equality Growths” focusing on the dialectical link between access to water, sanitation and equality.
Access to clean and safe water is a serious affecting many countries especially in Africa. In Nigeria, almost half of the population lacks access to quality water. There’s is also wide gap between urban and rural areas, men and women. Many children spend hours especially in the morning trying to collect water. This has serious adverse effects on the children particularly on their education and health.
Kano is one of the major states in Nigeria that requires large quantity of water due to the high demand. According to some sources, Kano demands at least 800 million litre daily, but the public supply for years is less than 400 million litres. This has compelled many people to patronize water vendors who are supplying water to many water users. There is public health concern on the quality of the water distributed by the water vendors. As we celebrate Water Day, there is urgent need for government and other stakeholders to take a decisive actions aimed at providing adequate and clean water for all.
Junaidu can be reached @junaiduromi@gmail.com
