The Kano State House of Assembly has passed into law the Kano state Water Users Association (WUA) bill 2025.
The bill seeks to allow the formation of a formal Association where farmers who share an irrigation system take charge of the operations and maintenance of the infrastructures for irrigation and water related activities to enhance agricultural productivity in the state.
The bill(consisting of 70 clauses) was considered in the committee of the whole house and third reading by the clerk, Bashir Diso, and afterwards passed by the speaker, Hon Ismail Falgore, who presided over the plenary.
According to the majority leader, Hon Lawan Husseini, who briefed Journalists on the new bill shortly after plenary said, the bill aims to give opportunity to farmers who are using the dams and buying water from the ministry of water resources for irrigation purposes to have an association which will be govern by them.
He said they will elect their leaders and be responsible in protecting the infrastructure, payment of water service fees, maintaining the system to prevent collapse and would work under the supervision of a management committee from the ministry of water resources.
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“When they are formed, they will permanently take over the control of selling of water which they will be using for their irrigation purposes; collecting revenue and be in charge of distilling the canals in which the water are coming directly to their farmlands,” he noted.
The house however adjourned it sitting until 21st April, 2025.
Meanwhile Nigeria’s Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, in an event in October 2024 in Akwa Ibom stressed that the WUAs would help in enhancing irrigation farming and food security in Nigeria when they are well organised and strengthened.
He also noted that it could also lead to improved performance in the irrigation sector, enhancing efficiency, ownership of irrigation infrastructure, and accountability among farmers.
