Lagos water MOU lacks transparency, says CAPPA

Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has expressed deep concern over a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Lagos State Government and the Belstar/ENKA consortium to rehabilitate and expand the state’s water infrastructure, alleging that the entire process and the outcome lack transparency.

In a statement made available to Nigerian Tribune, CAPPA noted that while the government called the MoU a strategic move to improve water supply, information made public about it raised more questions than answers.

The non-governmental organisation (NGO) called for transparency about the deal, saying the Lagos State government owed its taxpayers a duty of disclosure and accountability.

“As an organisation committed to promoting public participation and ensuring the rights of citizens to access safe and affordable water, CAPPA finds the current approach deeply troubling and symptomatic of a broader pattern of opacity in public water governance in Lagos State,” said Akinbode Oluwafemi, Executive Director, CAPPA.

“That this agreement was conceived of and finalised behind closed doors, then simply announced to the public, is an affront to the very notion of a democratically-accountable government.

“More than just a utility, water provision is a fundamental public service and essential good. Therefore, any contracts or agreements that affect its delivery, affordability, and quality must be subjected to the highest standards of transparency and public accountability.

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“This MoU, which will determine the future of water access for millions of Lagosians, appears to have been signed without public consultation or legislative scrutiny.”

According to CAPPA, the government’s announcement raised several red flags that must be urgently addressed.

Finally, CAPPA emphasised that the solution to Lagos’ water challenges “is not to look to corporations with profit motives but to reinvest in public water infrastructure, strengthen public institutions, and embrace participatory governance.”