The Delta State Commissioner of Water Resources, Dr. Isaac Tosan Wilkie, announced that access to potable water has significantly improved across the state. Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, October 23, 2025, after presenting and defending the ministry’s 2025 budget before the Interministerial Budget Committee of the Ministry of Economic Planning, Dr Wilkie stated that residents of Delta State are now enjoying better water supply, with many expressing positive feedback on the progress made.
Addressing criticisms that the ministry has not been doing enough to provide tap water across the state, Dr Wilkie responded to allegations brought up in a recent gathering. “Yes, I was told that in one of your gatherings somebody made such a comment. Well, I cannot go into arguments with that person, but the truth remains that potable water in Delta State has come to be a thing everybody in Delta has started to enjoy, and they can talk about it positively,” he stated.
He highlighted recent progress in water supply, emphasizing improvements over the past year. “Because before now, I cannot tell you what happened because that may be an impression, but for the past year, I can tell you for free that there is a positive deviation from what they used to know. Water in Delta has been a ready commodity for Deltans. Go to Kwale, Ughelli, Koko, Owa, and Umunede. You will see where we imbibed water in the last year.”
Looking ahead to 2025, Dr. Wilkie outlined the ministry’s priorities, focusing on sustaining and expanding existing water projects. “Now you see what we have done in 2024, and it is still ongoing, and we are still doing more. I can assure you that before the end of the year, we will have more, but in 2025, our projection is to do more expansion,” he said.
He explained that the ministry’s strategy would focus on reactivating existing water schemes rather than launching new projects. “There are a whole lot of water schemes in the state. We are not looking to do new projects but to reactivate the ones that are already on the ground because we noticed that we have water schemes all over the state. Virtually every community in Delta State will see the presence of the Ministry of Water Resources, but some of these projects have gone bad just because one or two small parts are not available. So our concentration will be to make sure sustainability is the watchword,” Dr. Wilkie concluded.
He described the budget defence as a standard annual process for all ministries. “The exercise is a normal thing that every ministry will do. It is a yearly thing; you must prepare your budget, and it is necessary to come and defend it before the committee headed by the Commissioner of Economic Planning. That is exactly what we have just done,” said Dr. Wilkie.
The ministry’s plan aims to enhance water supply across Delta State by maintaining and improving existing infrastructure, ensuring that all communities have access to reliable water resources.
