National Water Resources Policy

National Water Resources Policy Current Version

January 2022

The Water Resources Policy of Nigeria is a statement of the Government’s philosophy and objectives for the nation’s freshwater and possibly marine water resources including its strategies for achieving its set goals. In Nigeria, water is undoubtedly the most important natural resource the country has and is, unfortunately, the most undervalued and neglected natural resource. In no part of Nigeria is the freshwater of sufficient quantity and quality that it can continually be misused, abused and mismanaged in the way it has been in past decades without future dire consequences arising. Water scarcity combined with overexploitation of the available resources threatens Nigeria’s sustainable development. Therefore, the underlying philosophy of this policy is the recognition that water is key to sustainable socio-economic development as it has a direct effect on the population’s health conditions, environmental preservation, including the achievement of international development targets. The policy commits to eradicating water-borne diseases, poverty reduction and institutionalizing integrated and sustainable water resources management to meet the nation’s present and future water resources need in all demand sectors — including human consumption, animal husbandry, agriculture, hydropower, inland waterways and industry while protecting the environment.