Water producers have asked the federal government to address the increasing cost of nylon to halt further increases in the prices of sachet water.

The National President of the Association For Table Water Producers (ATWAP), Dr. Clementina Ativie, made this request during an event commemorating this year’s World Water Day, themed “Water for Peace,” held at EXPOYO in Sango, Ibadan, on Friday.

Noting that nylon is the primary material for packaging water, with no viable alternative, the water producers asked Nigerians to bear with the rapid escalation of their production costs and the consequent increase in the cost of sachet water until the government intervenes. Due to the skyrocketing cost of production, Ativie stated that over 30,000 water producers were on the verge of closing down their factories.

According to Ativie, the water producers were dismayed by the increasing cost of sachet water, which compelled Nigerians to seek alternatives that are largely not potable.

She warned that the consequences of people not being able to afford potable water were grave, especially regarding susceptibility to waterborne diseases and the proliferation of unregulated sachet water producers.

To ensure the production of potable and affordable sachet water, Ativie urged the government to address the increasing cost of nylon and provide support for water producers to prevent factory closures. On tackling unregulated producers, she called for collaboration between regulatory agencies and ATWAP, emphasizing that regulatory agencies had the primary responsibility.

Ativie remarked, “Just last month, I addressed a press conference in Lagos where ATWAP appealed to the federal government to save the water industry from total collapse by providing financial support to the association to enhance the business of our members, numbering over 30,000 water producers across the country, and to address the rapid escalation of our production costs, thereby making sachet water, popularly known as pure water, almost unaffordable for the masses.

At the same time, we appealed to Nigerians to bear with us. Suffice it to say, as an association, we have always considered the interests of Nigerians our top priority.

Packaged water producers in Nigeria understand the importance of providing affordable and safe drinking water to citizens, and we strive to do so while also grappling with rising production costs. Nylon is our primary material for packaging, and we have no viable alternatives.

Therefore, we urgently require support from the government given the economic realities to prevent factory closures by our members and the resulting job losses and waterborne diseases that would follow if the water industry were allowed to collapse.

The population explosion, coupled with human developmental activities, has further exacerbated the scarcity of potable water, leading to increased demand for groundwater abstraction and purification for specific intended uses.”