On a cold Friday morning in May, every household had rubber drums, metal containers, and clay pots filled with water gathered from rainfall from the previous night, lined up in front of their houses. Individuals, especially women, were joyfully transferring the water into their kitchens in the Isanlu-Isin community, under the Isin Local Government Area of Kwara State. “Despite the rain starting around 2:00 am, I woke up to collect rainwater.
During this season, it’s our main source for drinking and cooking,” said Ashaolu Ruth, 58, a resident of Isanlu-Isin. According to Ashaolu, the Igbonla River used to be the primary source of water. “Until we used it to cook and the food’s colour changed to brown,” she said, illustrating her point with Obe Ila (a soup delicacy made from okra, popularly consumed among Yorubas).
Thus, to prevent diseases from ravaging the community, villagers stopped consuming the water and repurposed it for only bathing and washing clothes decades ago. Engaged in tailoring activities in her small shop, another resident, Adeleye Oluwakemi, paused to lament about the water scarcity affecting the community, reflecting on her circumstances as a woman. Describing the difficulty she passes through to get water, she shakes her head raising her voice to scream “Iya omi n je wa gidi gan” which translates to “We are suffering greatly from the lack of water”.
“There are boreholes and wells that were dug, but due to the hilly terrain of this part .