By Akpan Glory
The Nigeria Integrated Water Resources Management Commission (NIWRMC) says it will digitise water use licensing and monitoring as part of reforms introduced within the first 100 days of its Executive Director, Dr Aminu Zaria.
Zaria disclosed this on Monday in Abuja while briefing journalists on achievements recorded since he assumed office.
He said the milestone reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to safeguarding Nigeria’s water resources, strengthening national water security and advancing President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Zaria described NIWRMC as Nigeria’s water regulatory authority established under the Water Resources Act to promote equitable, economically and environmentally sustainable water resources management.
According to him, the commission regulates and controls rights to develop and use water resources shared by more than one state.
He said NIWRMC’s mandate includes defining water footprint standards, regulating water resources development and planning water resources management nationwide.
Zaria added that operational responsibilities cover water abstraction licensing, allocation planning, monitoring and enforcement, catchment management, aquifer protection, regulatory compliance and conflict resolution.
He said the commission plays a critical role in national development, food security, industrial growth, environmental sustainability and climate resilience.
Zaria said he assumed office on Sept. 1, 2025, with a vision to build a disciplined, transparent, data-driven and technology-enabled regulatory institution.
He said the commission inherited challenges including deteriorated headquarters facilities, inadequate staffing, fragmented data systems, manual licensing processes and weak enforcement capacity.
Other challenges, he said, included dormant catchment offices, limited inter-agency collaboration, low public awareness, poor staff morale and critical funding constraints.
“These challenges threatened effective delivery of our mandate amid Nigeria’s growing water demand,” Zaria said.
He said reforms were immediately initiated with ministerial support to restore order, strengthen systems, empower staff and rebuild public confidence.
Zaria said actions taken included staff town hall engagements, inauguration of a think tank team and revival of field and catchment offices nationwide.
He said the commission introduced the Professionalism, Adeptness, Consistency and Excellence (PACE) Agenda to improve service delivery and institutional culture.
Zaria said partnerships were strengthened with key stakeholders for collaboration, capacity building and data sharing.
He disclosed that NIWRMC signed an MoU with the Kano State Water Board to strengthen water governance at subnational level.
Zaria added that salaries of security and janitorial personnel were reviewed to improve staff welfare and morale.
He said reforms recorded improved data availability, enhanced visibility, revived catchment operations, increased staff efficiency and stronger inter-agency synergy.
Zaria said NIWRMC is now more stable, coordinated and strategically positioned than it was 100 days ago.
Looking ahead, he said the commission would deploy a National Water Use Licensing Digital Portal to improve transparency and licensing efficiency.
He added that monitoring networks would be expanded across catchments and a national real-time water data observatory established.
Zaria said the commission would strengthen community-level compliance through partnerships with state governments, traditional institutions and water users.
“Our goal is to secure Nigeria’s water future and ensure every drop is sustainably managed for generations,” Zaria said.
He thanked President Tinubu, the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, National Assembly committees and NIWRMC staff for their support.
Zaria reaffirmed his commitment to leading an accountable, innovative and future-ready commission aligned with national development priorities. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Tosin Kolade
