The water vendors of Lagos

Public boreholes, water taps and wells in many areas of Lagos State have long become common sights, but that has however not discouraged many young men from different parts of the North, from exploring the business of water vending. Many of them prefer to go with the trend of pushing lined up jerry cans on […]

Public boreholes, water taps and wells in many areas of Lagos State have long become common sights, but that has however not discouraged many young men from different parts of the North, from exploring the business of water vending.
Many of them prefer to go with the trend of pushing lined up jerry cans on a two wheeled  cart, but some still stick to the old style of vending water, using two gallons with a stick suspended on their shoulder.
But, despite the fact that this system of water vending has become a thing of the past in some Northern states, as many have resorted to using the jerry can style, the trend of supplying water using two suspended gallons still remains common in the  water vending trade in Lagos. That is however not surprising, when one takes into consideration the huge population in the state, considered as one of Africa’s major business hubs.
Malam Sa’idu, one of the many   engaged in selling water using this system in Lagos, tells Daily Trust that it  is easier to use the gallon style to supply water to their customers, saying most water vendors using jerry cans started from this point .
“It is easier to use this method of vending water because it is less stressful, even those pushing water on wheels started from this method of using gallons,” Sa’idu said.
Although less stressful, most water vendors using the gallons, as observed by our correspondent, operate within close proximity to lessen  the stress on their shoulder, as they fetch the water from wells or taps to their point of delivery.
“You know it is not easy to carry water on the shoulder.What we usually do is to identify a certain point where customers are. We then later locate the water point, which may be either a well, borehole or taps,” Sa’idu added.
Could the price of such endeavour be proportional to the effort put in?  many will ask. Our correspondent gathered that two gallons go for N60, which amounts  to N30 per gallon.  Though the money  is not much as some would observe, the close proximity, however, as explained earlier by Sa’idu, coupled with making several trips from morning to evening ,maximize their income leaving many of them contented.
“The more trips you make from morning to evening, the more money you make.Although many could say the money is not much, but when we make constant trips, we make quite a living.” Baba Bala, another water vendor said.
Considering that the vast majority of water vendors in  the Southwest, particularly in Lagos are from the north operating on seasonal basis, the survival instincts always remain ripe and high, creating a stiff competition among them  and their counterpart  in terms of  water vending.

Any job will expand or shrink to the size of the man who holds it according to Asa T. Spaulding, a US business executive, therefore, saving their earnings according to the local water vendors is their number one priority; otherwise one would be left in the wood.
“It is not easy to come all the way from the north to this side of the country and not to save the money you make, I think that is very unwise,” Baba Bala said.
Competition among other water vendors using other systems of supplying water is never absent, but the edge the water vendors selling in gallons have over their counterparts, remains that they could reach any nook and cranny without difficulty, especially in areas that  are not motorable.
“The fact that we move on foot, we find it very easy to reach different locations that are not even motorable.We also find it easy to manoeuvre ourselves in areas where there are holdups,” he added.
Some of their customers interviewed by this reporter revealed that the reason why they preferred buying from this class of water vendors, is that their prices are cheap, while their water is clean.
“They supply water cheaply and their water is clean, while supply is quicker when compared with the rest,” Iya Abike, a restaurant owner said.
From all indications the gallon water vendors have no future plans to join their counterparts, even if they can afford to buy carts to push water. Their reasons  are obvious “it is a method of water vending that does not ask for too much, when you consider the startup capital, the movement from one point to the next and the fact that there is little or no risk involved, Malam Sa’idu said.
As opined by many not only the water vendors themselves, the sale of  water using the gallon style will continue to remain a tough challenge  to  its counterparts.