The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has criticised the Lagos Water Corporation (LWC) over what it described as opacity and procedural breaches in the ongoing procurement of mini and micro waterworks under a Build-Finance-Operate-Transfer (BFOT) Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.
In a statement issued on Sunday, CAPPA alleged that the Lagos State Government’s handling of the process contravenes the state’s transparency laws and undermines accountability in the management of public water resources.
The LWC had, in September 2025, invited private firms to submit proposals for the rehabilitation, upgrade, operation and maintenance of several public water facilities across the state. The facilities listed include Lekki and Akilo Waterworks, Victoria Island Annex and Magodo Waterworks, Abesan and Alexander Waterworks, as well as Apapa Waterworks.
CAPPA, however, argued that the procurement process has been shrouded in secrecy despite the requirements of the Lagos State PPP Disclosure Framework (2024), which mandates proactive disclosure at every stage of PPP projects.
According to the group, the framework requires the publication of feasibility studies, Requests for Proposals (RFPs), bidder lists, evaluation criteria, contract summaries, fiscal risk assessments and procurement milestones on a public portal without the need for Freedom of Information requests.
The organisation maintained that none of these documents has been made publicly available since the procurement began last year. It added that details such as bidder identities, evaluation benchmarks, procurement timelines and award decisions remain undisclosed.
CAPPA further noted that no documentation related to the process has been uploaded on the state’s PPP disclosure portal managed by the Office of Public-Private Partnerships (OPPP), the agency responsible for ensuring transparency in PPP projects.
The group said the only substantive information about the procurement has appeared in a foreign industry publication, Global Water Intelligence, which reportedly stated that the LWC received 19 proposals by October 2025 and expected to conclude awards by March 2026 for a 10-year contract.
CAPPA also claimed that it learned through foreign media reports that Lagos State had initiated a parallel process to privatise wastewater infrastructure, beginning with treatment plants in Lekki.
Describing the development as troubling, the organisation said it was unacceptable that residents must rely on a foreign subscription-based journal for information about decisions affecting public water and sanitation systems.
The group argued that secrecy in the mini and micro waterworks PPP could have implications for water tariffs, public oversight and long-term fiscal sustainability. It warned that PPP water arrangements in other jurisdictions have sometimes led to tariff increases and reduced accountability.
CAPPA called on the Lagos State Government to immediately suspend the procurement process until full compliance with statutory disclosure obligations is achieved. It also demanded the publication of all outstanding procurement documents, independent oversight to safeguard procedural integrity, and meaningful stakeholder engagement in decisions concerning water governance.
The organisation maintained that publicly financed and democratically governed water systems remain the most equitable model for service delivery. It urged the state government to prioritise increased public funding, reinvest sector revenues into infrastructure maintenance and expansion, and focus on universal access.
CAPPA appealed to residents, civil society groups and labour unions to monitor developments in the state’s water governance process and advocate for transparency and accountability.
