Water Supply and Sanitation Challenges in an Urban Setting: A Case Study

David O. Olukanni, Michael O. Ajetomobi, Samson O. Tebowei, Olakunle O. Ologun, Oluwasanmi M. Kayode

Access to clean water, good sanitation services and improved hygiene practices enhance sound health, boost socio-cultural development, and promote economic balance. This study is focused on investigating and identifying the state of water, sanitation and hygiene practices in an urban setting, and proffer solutions to the probable challenges associated with it. Five Local Government areas (LGAs) of Lagos State were selected for this study. The survey involved the use of structured questionnaires administered to randomly selected residents from the LGAs. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software application and descriptive statistics were used for data analysis. The study reveals that access to water and proper sanitation is insufficient and its services is at high cost to many of the residents who live below the poverty line of less than $2 per day. The supply of water from the water corporation to the local government is not sufficient thereby making many to rely on commercial and private boreholes which often time is expensive. The result also shows that indifferent attitude characterizes poor sanitation which is basically associated with poor maintenance, indiscriminate dumping of refuse in drains and ineffective drainage systems. It is therefore important that sustained cooperation be developed among key actors in order to reduce cost of gaining access to potable water. There should also be continuous sensitization and enlightenment campaigns to the public on the dangers of environmental neglect.