Preventive maintenance: Nigeria’s missing link to sustainable infrastructure, economic growth

By: Felix Oluwalomola

Infrastructure shows progress. Maintenance sustains it, but the ability to preserve and maintain this infrastructure truly tests Nigeria’s progress. In the country, priority is placed on constructing new roads, buildings, schools, hospitals, and other public facilities. However, little attention is given to sustaining these investments through constant and intentional preventive maintenance. As a facility manager, I believe Nigeria should move away from reactive maintenance to proactive preservation.

Preventive maintenance refers to scheduled maintenance work carried out at regular intervals to ensure that equipment and infrastructure remain in good working condition. The International Facility Management Association (IFMA) describes it as a deliberate approach aimed at improving the lifespan of assets and avoiding unplanned breakdowns through routine inspections, servicing, and upkeep. This stands in sharp contrast to reactive maintenance, which only kicks in after a failure has already occurred.

When done consistently, preventive maintenance can significantly extend the life of assets, reduce unexpected downtime, enhance safety, and lower long-term operating costs. Evidence from across the globe supports this, but it is particularly relevant in a country like Nigeria, where infrastructure is under heavy pressure.

Despite these clear advantages, preventive maintenance remains undervalued in both Nigeria’s public and private sectors. It is often treated as a luxury or postponed until facilities start showing visible signs of decay. A 2020 report by the Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB) revealed that over 60 per cent of public buildings in major Nigerian cities do not have any form of planned maintenance schedule. The result is a constant cycle of emergency repairs, escalating costs, and deteriorating public services.

In developed economies, preventive maintenance is a foundational element of infrastructure management. A good example is the Pavement Preservation programme promoted by the United States Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The programme combines preventive maintenance, minor rehabilitation, and routine repairs to maintain roads while they are still in fair or good condition. Their approach is built around a simple but powerful idea: “keep good roads good.” This helps to delay deterioration, cut long-term costs, and improve user satisfaction.

To make serious progress in infrastructure management and service delivery, Nigeria must begin to treat preventive maintenance not as an option, but as a core part of planning and budgeting. It will require leadership commitment, technical training, and a shift in mindset — from repairing damage to preventing it in the first place.

We see the outcome of poor preventive maintenance every day. This includes government buildings with leaking roofs, roads with hazardous potholes, hospital equipment that cannot be used due to minor faults, and fire outbreaks caused by neglected electrical systems. These failures are not only infrastructure-related problems — they can be attributed to safety, governance, and economic concerns.

ALSO READ FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE: Online reports linking Shettima’s remarks to Rivers crisis false — Presidency

A regular schedule of preventive maintenance, along with a sustainable budget allocation, could have avoided many of these occurrences. Instead, we often find ourselves in a cycle of costly reconstruction, discomfort, and wasted resources.

Beyond cost savings, creating a culture of preventive maintenance gives us economic benefits and financial advantages. It is a job-creating venture. In order to implement a nationwide preventive maintenance programme, this will require the services of professional facility managers, technicians, engineers, cleaners, security personnel, and building inspectors. This, in turn, will create more job possibilities for youth employment and help build local capacity in skilled trades. A maintenance-first approach helps the government to make good use of public money, avoiding unnecessary expenses on costly replacements and emergency repairs.

For this to happen, enforcement of government policy must take the lead. The Nigerian government has made a great step with Executive Order 11, signed in 2022, which mandates Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) in the country to establish maintenance departments and integrate routine asset inspections. This step is praiseworthy. However, implementation and enforcement are strongly required. Every public facility should have a maintenance plan with scheduled daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, bi-annual, and annual inspections or preventive maintenance and sufficient budget allocation.

The private sector has a vital role to play in this regard. Private entities must also take responsibility. Many firms and building owners see preventive maintenance as a discretionary expense rather than a strategic necessity and investment in their assets. Large infrastructure users such as banks, manufacturers, and real estate developers must invest in engaging qualified facility managers or professionals and give them a mandate to lead long-term asset care strategies.

It cannot be emphasised enough that facility managers are an essential solution. Facility managers are not just maintenance staff or personnel — they are strategic professionals who bridge the gap between infrastructure and equipment performance and organisational goals. According to the International Facility Management Association (IFMA), a facility manager is expected to operate and maintain the facility in a manner that supports the goals and mission of the demand organisation. They must interpret and also identify the needs of the organisation and customers while balancing competing requirements.

For Nigeria, both the public and private sectors must always acknowledge the importance of this profession and engage competent individuals to make plans and execute preventive maintenance strategies.

In recommendation, the following actions are necessary to instil a culture of preventive maintenance: Enforce daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, bi-annually, and annual preventive maintenance plans as the case may be for all public infrastructure and equipment; mandate hiring of facility managers for public and private buildings above a certain size; launch national public awareness campaigns to educate and promote a maintenance-first mindset; and allocate a sustainable budget for maintenance purposes.

In conclusion, preventive maintenance should not be seen as an optional activity but as an essential activity for infrastructure or equipment to reach its expected life span. For Nigeria to protect its infrastructure investments and also ensure their longevity, the country must shift from a reactive maintenance approach to a proactive maintenance mindset. Adopting this attitude will boost national development, save public funds, create jobs, and improve service delivery.

Plan. Maintain. Protect Nigeria’s Future. The future of our infrastructure and economic growth largely depends on it.

Felix Oluwalomola, a facility management professional, writes from Lagos.