13 Dec Smart Meters Bring Water Savings to Nigerian Households

After relocating to an estate in Utako, a district in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, Jonas Odocha discovered a smart water meter effectively addressing his previous concerns about estimated billing, water scarcity, and wastage in his former residence in Maitama. “Now, you pay only for the water you use,” Odocha noted. “The meter also detects leakages. If there is a leakage somewhere, it will notify you immediately.”

Smart water meters are meters that use advanced technology to measure and manage water usage in real-time. They provide accurate and detailed information on water consumption, allowing households, businesses, and utilities to monitor and control their water usage effectively.

Muti’Ullah Akinsanya, another resident in the estate, shared that for just ₦5,000, he and six other residents can collectively access 20,000 litres of water, a supply that typically lasts them at least a month. “Using this meter for six months now has taught me how to be economical with water,” he said.

Globally, there is a pressing issue of water waste. At least 1.7 trillion gallons of water are lost annually and the World Bank also predicts that by 2025, two-thirds of the global population will face water scarcity. Nigeria, despite its abundant water resources, struggles to effectively manage, use, and conserve water, resulting in limited access to basic drinking water for at least 39% of households. The country’s inadequate water infrastructure and inefficient management systems are major contributors to this persistent problem, hindering the effective allocation and distribution of this vital resource.

Residents of major cities in Nigeria are acting against water waste with the help of Hydronamics, a groundbreaking startup that uses innovative technology to battle water waste and promote sustainable water management practices.

Nigeria’s WASH sector in crisis

In 2018, Nigeria’s Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) sector was declared to be in a state of emergency, with 60 million individuals not having basic access to clean drinking water and 167 million lacking basic handwashing facilities. Furthermore, a UNICEF report in 2023 revealed a crucial situation, with 78 million children facing increased risk of diseases due to poor water, sanitation, and hygiene services.

It was part of what inspired the Founder of Hydronamics, Hamza Yunusa. He explained that during a visit to a rural area in Gombe, a state in Nigeria’s northeast, he witnessed a boy drinking from a contaminated earth dam shared with animals. “It was not like he was putting in a cup or bottle or anything. He was drinking directly through his mouth. While he was doing that, there were other people and animals, like cattle and birds, drinking at the same time. That struck a chord. Because I had never seen anything like that”.

“When I was growing up in Minna, it [water systems] were quite functional. There were taps everywhere, even by the roadsides. So essentially, I had never seen anything like that. And I felt it was dehumanising.”

This experience, he said, pushed him to conduct research about Nigeria’s water sector, including the functionality of water utilities across the country. His findings led him to establish Hydronamics, which now faces challenges as a startup, notably because of the high cost of infrastructure development and limited access to financing.

“We are trying to help utilities provide access to clean water, because that is the priority. That is what they are there to do in the first place but the problem is these utilities don’t have the money. so their infrastructure is in a derelict state. Unfortunately, there have not been upgraded. Most of the infrastructure have been there for 40, 50, to 60 years, no upgrades, no efficient maintenance protocols, nothing like that.”

Yunusa explained that for utilities with a large customer base, adopting Hydronamics’ meters can be quite expensive. He explained that a utility serving 100,000 customers would need to invest a substantial amount, as a single meter costs N150,000, “so imagine buying 100,000 units of that. Most of these utilities do not even generate enough revenue because first, their tariffs are not cost reflective.”

Smart meters for water management

Hydronamics’ smart meters, mobile payments, and leakage detection systems are crucial for efficient water management, helping track usage, simplify payments, and prevent losses. “It gives investors confidence to either come and invest in the infrastructure for the long term or, you know, for the short term to make their money and walk away,” he noted.

When water flows into the meter through an inlet pipe, it passes through a measuring chamber, where it turns a rotating dial or triggers a magnetic sensor, recording the volume of water passing through. The rotation or sensor reading is then calibrated to measure water usage in units such as gallons, litres, or cubic metres. The measured usage is then displayed on a dial face or digital display. The meter also features a valve that shuts off the water supply if the meter is removed or tampered with, ensuring accurate measurement.

Hayat Buhari, a project manager at Bellavue Estate, Abuja, who used Hydronamics’ meters on its 38 units of houses, said the significant impact of this system is in its ability to reduce wastage of water which will reduce the cost of average water consumption per household at a given period.

“The smart metering system can be considered as one of the ways we can achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by reducing wastage in water consumption, which will, in turn, ensure available clean water to families across the nation,” Buhari said.

‘Water is the cornerstone of life’

According to Yunusa, corruption and non-revenue water (NRW) losses are significant challenges faced by public water utilities, including theft and unauthorised water connections. To address these, Hydronamics has established positive relationships with some multinationals that provide water infrastructure financing. Currently, in Katsina State, northwest Nigeria, a water infrastructure financing project is in the pipeline.

Abubakar Amadu, a Procurement Officer for the Nigeria Sustainable Urban and Rural Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (NG-SURWASH) Katsina Programme Implementation Unit, says the state government was attracted to Hydronamics efforts. He said that it is in the process of contracting the startup to provide services to 26 Local Government Areas (LGAs) across the states through the state’s Ministry of Water Resources.

“My biggest dream and vision at the moment is seeing that I have a sustainable way to provide access to water and funding for water utilities,” Yunusa stated

Currently, his smart meters are only available in urban areas, however he has ambitions to expand and make it accessible to rural communities in the future. Yunusa also hopes to see a Nigeria where at least 18 million households can access clean water, however, his immediate goal is to deploy its meters to 1 million homes in the next 3 years. “Water is the cornerstone of life. Without water, there would be no life on earth. We need all stakeholders, ourselves, as companies, individuals, government, financiers, everybody must put their hands on deck to make sure that our water resources are protected.“