Human Right to Water and Water Problems in Nigeria (Pollution, Protection, and Preservation)

Authors

  • Joy Odoyo Ajayi  University of the Pacific, McGeorge Law School, Sacramento, California, United States.
  • Oladipo Olukunle Ajayi  Principal Partner, StoneBrooks Solicitors, Lagos, Nigeria.
  • Motunrayo Tolani Omidiora  Nigerian Law School, Enugu State, Nigeria.
  • George Addo  Principal and Managing Attorney, Affum Addo & Associates, Washington DC, United States.
  • Amina Catherine Peter-Anyebe  Department of Political Science (International Relations and Diplomacy), Federal University of Lafia, Lafia, Nasarawa State, Nigeria

Keywords:

Human Right to Water, Water Pollution, Water Protection, Water Preservation, Water Problems in Nigeria.

Abstract

This review examines the intersection between the human right to water and the persistent water-related challenges facing Nigeria. Despite international recognition of access to clean water as a fundamental human right, millions of Nigerians continue to suffer from inadequate access, contamination, and waterborne diseases due to pollution, infrastructural decay, and poor governance. The paper critically explores the major sources of water pollution—including industrial discharge, oil spills, and poor waste management—while assessing the regulatory and institutional failures that undermine water protection efforts. Additionally, the review highlights preservation strategies and community-led interventions aimed at ensuring sustainable water use and environmental resilience. By analyzing Nigeria’s policy framework in light of global human rights standards, the study advocates for more integrated and enforceable approaches to water governance, emphasizing the need for accountability, public participation, and long-term preservation of water resources.

References

  1. ABIODUN, A. S., TEMILADE, E. O., OLADIMEJI, F. N., & TAWAKALIT, F. T. (2016). Assessment of water contamination in Nigeria. J Basic Appl Res Int, 19(1), 62-76.
  2. Abubakar, I. R. (2019). Factors influencing household access to drinking water in Nigeria. Utilities Policy, 58, 40–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jup.2019.03.005
  3. Adedeji, A. A., & Ako, R. T. (2009). Towards achieving the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals: The imperative of reforming water pollution control and waste management laws in Nigeria. Desalination, 248(1-3), 642-649
  4. Adeoti, O. (2014). An institutional analysis of the implementation of integrated water resources management in Nigeria.
  5. Adewumi, J. R., Ilemobade, A. A., & van Zyl, J. E. (2010). Treated wastewater reuse in South Africa: Overview, potential and challenges. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 55(2), 221–231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2010.09.012
  6. Ajai, O. (2012). Law, water and sustainable development: framework of Nigerian law. Law Env't & Dev. J., 8, 89.
  7. Ajibade, L., & Eche, J. (2017). Indigenous knowledge for climate change adaptation in Nigeria. Indigenous knowledge systems and climate change management in Africa, 219.
  8. Akpabio, E. M. (2012). Water supply and sanitation services sector in Nigeria: The policy trend and practice constraints.
  9. Alzamora, P. L. (2015). An introduction to the human right to water: Law, politics, and beyond. WIREs Water, 2(4), 393–404. https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1405
  10. Atapattu, S. (2016). The right to a healthy life or the right to die polluted? The emergence of a human right to a healthy environment under international law. Tulane Environmental Law Journal, 16(1), 65–126. https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=The+right+to+a+healthy+life+or+the+right+to+die+polluted%3F&author=Sumudu+Atapattu&publication_year=2016
  11. Bakker, K. (2007). The “commons” versus the “commodity”: Alter‐globalization, anti‐privatization and the human right to water in the global south. Antipode, 39(3), 430-455.
  12. Boisson de Chazournes, L. (2004). Environmental Principles-From Political Slogans to Legal Rules.
  13. Brown, C., Neves-Silva, P., & Heller, L. (2016). The human right to water and sanitation: a new perspective for public policies. Ciencia & saude coletiva, 21, 661-670.
  14. Çelik, M., Ergun, Ö., Johnson, B., Keskinocak, P., Lorca, Á., Pekgün, P., & Swann, J. (2012). Humanitarian logistics. In New directions in informatics, optimization, logistics, and production (pp. 18-49). Informs.
  15. Daci, J. (2012). Protection of the Human Right to Water Under International Law: The Need for a New Legal Framework. Academicus International Scientific Journal, 6(6), 71–82.
  16. Ebeku, K. S. A. (2004). Constitutional right to a healthy environment and human rights approaches to environmental protection in Nigeria: Gbemre v. Shell revisited. Journal of African Law, 48(2), 182–192. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021855304000097
  17. Echefu, N., & Akpofure, E. (2002). Environmental impact assessment in Nigeria: regulatory background and procedural framework. EIA Training Resource Manual, 63-74.
  18. Ekpo, U. F., Hürlimann, E., Schur, N., Oluwole, A. S., Abe, E. M., Mafe, M. A., ... & Vounatsou, P. (2013). Mapping and prediction of schistosomiasis in Nigeria using compiled survey data and Bayesian geospatial modelling. Geospatial Health, 7(2), 355-366.
  19. Elum, Z. A., Mopipi, K., & Henri-Ukoha, A. (2016). Oil exploitation and its socioeconomic effects on the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 23, 12880-12889.
  20. Ezeh, O. K., Agho, K. E., Dibley, M. J., Hall, J., & Page, A. N. (2014). The impact of water and sanitation on childhood mortality in Nigeria: evidence from demographic and health surveys, 2003–2013. International journal of environmental research and public health, 11(9), 9256-9272.
  21. Fagbohun, O. (2002). Reappraising the Nigerian Constitution for Environmental Management. Ambrose Ali University Law Journal, 1(1), 25-26.
  22. Fasona, M., Adeonipekun, P. A., Agboola, O., Akintuyi, A., Bello, A., Ogundipe, O., ... & Omojola, A. (2019). Incentives for collaborative governance of natural resources: A case study of forest management in southwest Nigeria. Environmental development, 30, 76-88.
  23. Gbadegesin, A. S., & Olorunfemi, F. (2007). Assessment of rural water supply management in selected rural areas of Oyo State, Nigeria. Nairobi: African Technology Policy Studies Network.
  24. Glazebrook, T., & Kola-Olusanya, A. (2011). Justice, conflict, capital, and care: Oil in the Niger Delta. Environmental Ethics, 33(2), 163-84.
  25. Gleick, P. H. (1998). The human right to water. Water Policy, 1(5), 487–503. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1366-7017(99)00008-2
  26. Goldface-Irokalibe, I. J. (2008, January). Water management in federal and federal-type countries: Nigerian perspectives. In International Conference on Water Management. Zaragoza, Spain, July (pp. 7-9).
  27. Ite, A. E. , Ibok, U. J. , Ite, M. U. , & Petters, S. W. (2013). Petroleum Exploration and Production: Past and Present Environmental Issues in the Nigeria’s Niger Delta. American Journal of Environmental Protection, 1(4), 78-90.
  28. Kanyerere, T., Tramberend, S., Levine, A. D., Mokoena, P., Mensah, P., Chingombe, W., ... & Prakash, M. (2018). Water futures and solutions: Options to enhance water security in sub-Saharan Africa. Systems analysis approach for complex global challenges, 93-111.
  29. Mukherji, A., Shah, T., & Giordano, M. (2012). Managing energy–irrigation nexus in India: A typology of state interventions. Water Policy, 14(2), 284–297. https://doi.org/10.2166/wp.2011.144
  30. Nwankwoala, H. O. (2014). Problems and options of integrated water resources management in Nigeria: administrative constraints and policy strategies. International Letters of Natural Sciences, 9.
  31. Nwankwpala, H. O. (2011). Coastal aquifers of Nigeria: An overview of its management and sustainability considerations. Journal of applied technology in environmental sanitation, 1(4).
  32. Okeke, I. O. (2009). Access to Potable domestic water in the rural communities of Southwestern Anambra State, Nigeria (Doctoral dissertation, University of Lagos (Nigeria)
  33. Okoye, C. O., & Iteyere, P. O. (2014). Health Implications of Polluting Warri-River in Delta State, Nigeria. International Journal of Engineering Science Invention, 3(4), 35-43.
  34. Olalekan, R. M., Omidiji, A. O., Nimisngha, D., Odipe, O. E., & Olalekan, A. S. (2018). Health risk assessment on heavy metals ingestion through groundwater drinking pathway for residents in an oil and gas producing area of Rivers State, Nigeria. Open Journal of Yangtze Gas and Oil, 3(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojogas.2018.31001
  35. Oyegoke, S. O., Adeyemi, A. O., & Sojobi, A. O. (2012). The challenges of water supply for a megacity: a case study of Lagos Metropolis. International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research,, 3(2), 1-10.
  36. Rukayat, B. O. (2019). Water supply regulation in Nigeria: problems, challenges, solutions and benefits. Вестник Российского университета дружбы народов. Серия: Экология и безопасность жизнедеятельности, 27(1), 65-81.
  37. Sultana, F., & Loftus, A. (2013). The right to water: prospects and possibilities. In The right to water (pp. 1-18). Routledge.

International Journal of Scientific Research in Science and Technology

Downloads

Published

2019-08-30

Issue

Volume 6, Issue 4, July-August-2019

Section

Research Articles

License

Copyright (c) IJSRST

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

[1]
Joy Odoyo Ajayi, Oladipo Olukunle Ajayi, Motunrayo Tolani Omidiora, George Addo, Amina Catherine Peter-Anyebe "Human Right to Water and Water Problems in Nigeria (Pollution, Protection, and Preservation)" International Journal of Scientific Research in Science and Technology(IJSRST), Online ISSN : 2395-602X, Print ISSN : 2395-6011,Volume 6, Issue 4, pp.490-506, July-August-2019.