Engr. Olabisi Ayoola AGBEYO , a Water Resources and Environmental Engineer retired as the General Manager of Ekiti State Water Corporation, in 2022. Among other distinctions, she was the first female water Engineer in the old Ondo and Ekiti States, and the first female Engineer to head a Water Utility, in Ekiti State rising through the civil service ranks.
In this interview, she shared her 35 years experiences on Water utility management and operations, Water facility design, and Project Management. The interview was conducted by Dr Babatope Babalobi.
How has life been after retirement?
Five years before my retirement, I started preparing for the exit. I have been trying my hands on several things that came into my mind.
I abandoned my retirement business (poultry) because of banditry
I did poultry and have become a guru in poultry, but the issue of killing by bandits on farms made me withdraw from poultry farm. I then prayed for God’s direction on what to do next. I thank God for wisdom.
Are you thinking of going into consultancy with your wealth of experience?
Yes, if I have people of like minds to work with. We were in the process of pitching a solution to one of the Governors in the Southwest. We have just decided to slow things down because of the election year.
You are one of the very few females that became General Manager of Water Utility in Nigeria. What would you say were the challenges of the office?
Even rising through the ranks was a challenge before becoming General Manager. I was the first female engineer to become General Manager in both old Ondo and Ekiti States. I was the first registered female engineer in the water corporation both in the old Ondo and Ekiti states. There were lots of politicking, but I was not interested. I was very blunt and focused. There were a lot of hindrances. At the early stage, when I was selected, there were lots of opposition against me in the corporation.
Being the first female to have a master’s degree in Water Resources Engineering; my resume attracted the attention of a lot of decision makers, and I was their preferred candidate when the position of the General Manager was opened. This opened me up to a lot of contention especially from my fellow Engineers who felt that they were also qualified for the position. Though I was denied the opportunity at that time, through wisdom and prayers I was able to navigate my way through the situation.
Despite opposition I became General Manager through dedication and hard work
By the time Dr. Kayode Fayemi came on board as Ekiti State Governor, there was a proposal again that the most senior engineer should be considered for the position of General Manager, Opposition also came up, but through the help of God and the Governor’s resolve to pick competence over sentiment, I was considered for the office and put on a six-month probation. Eventually, I was on probation for nine months against the initial six months. My appointment was confirmed when they saw my performance and comments from our major consumers. When the next administration also came on board, I had been bad mouthed to the Governor but being who he was, He decided to test me and when he found nothing against me, he chose to retain me.
So, I think the grace of God, dedication, and hard work helped me through these trying times.
Working under male supervisors, did you face any incidents of sexual molestation or harassment?
No, not as a General Manager (GM) but I faced embarrassments earlier when I joined the service. That was in the late ’80s, the Engineer I was to be attached to rejected me on the ground that I was a female though he later regretted this. I told him I wasn’t the type of lady he thought, and he shouldn’t have addressed me like that since he had never seen or known me before. Eventually, we became very good friends before and after his retirement.
You have worked under three governors. What are your experiences?
Quite palatable and from another angle, it was not palatable. That was because some of these politicians are unpredictable and selfish. When you tell them one thing, they will go back to the Governor and tell him two or three things just for their selfish interest.
I had direct contact with the Governors, which made my work easier.
What will you think is the best model in terms of relationship between the State Governor, the Water Utility, and the Supervisory ministry for the water utility?
I will recommend two models which I have practised. I think for any Governor that wants to succeed in terms of water provision, water production and delivery of service, that Governor needs to talk to the MD directly. That does not stop the MD from briefing their commissioner because they are also important and relevant.
As the Governor, let the MD give you an update so that when the Commissioner comes, you can compare performance, know who is committed to his work. My advice to the GMs or MDs is that they have to humbly go to the Commissioner for briefing from time to time, carry the political head along in all they do whether the Commissioner likes them or not. Do your bit officially but carry the Governor along too.
Do you support the notion that leadership of Water Boards or Corporations should not be reserved for Engineers alone?
You know, Water Corporation is an engineering outfit, it will be challenging not to have an Engineer as the head because of the technicalities involved in an outfit like that. Anyone cannot just assume the headship position without an engineering background. There will be so many issues the Head needs to know, the technical know-how to be able to resolve issues. Anybody that does not have an engineering background will find it difficult to solve technical problems. The leadership must be above board and know more than the directors.
From your experiences, what will you say are the key attributes of a Managing Director of Water utility?
Water utilities are supposed to have the MD or GM to be an Engineer. As a Managing Director, you must be technically inclined. The work will be easier in this way than being from any other profession. When Directors sometimes want to be smart you can identify and stand your ground to get the right things done. If you are technically sound, you will be able to question some proposals that will be forwarded to you for consideration. When I was in service, my directors did not come to me with anything funny, because they would tell you that madam would know and not approve it. This is because of my experience in Engineering.
Another thing that helped me was teamwork. Although sometimes, you may need executive fiat to move ahead Since the MD is the chief accounting officer of corporation.
Also, constant training equipped me, and it gave me the knowledge of best practices in the water sector.
The first person we interviewed on this platform was Dr Akomeno Oteri. He is a foremost Hydrogeologist in Nigeria. He said the water sector does not belong to Engineers alone, and that Engineers think they are superior to the Hydrogeologists, and that the MD position of the utility should not be preserved for Engineers alone. What is your take on this?
He is right because he is from another sector. If you put the administrative person there, he will say he is the one that can best fit the position. It is just like telling you to put me in an accounting firm as the Head, yes, I might know a little about it, but I will not be able to make some decisions regarding financial matters, because that is not my field. If you could be all in all, there would not have been reasons for people to major in different fields. Everyone has his field, and that’s why you should stay in your field so that you can become a specialist there. You cannot be everywhere. I will advise that everybody should stay where he or she belongs.
What has been your experience with the Public-Private Partnerships? Some have argued that Water utilities should be handed to the Private sector for better management.
I wouldn’t say they should hand it over to the private sector. When we went to Columbia, the government agencies and a private sector were still running the sector. As it is done in the Power sector, the private and the public sector can manage the utility. There can be competition, but the private should not take over the utility. In Nigeria, there is always partiality. The utility has not been given to the best hand, but it is given out based on familiarity.
The government should pay more attention to the Utilities for better service delivery by providing adequate funding as and when due, with no delay. Gradually, the government can disengage by reducing the fund to the Utility. This will assist the utility to begin to strive well and overcome most of their challenges. What I think Nigeria should start with is to invite the Water corporation for a round table discussion where they will be able to identify their challenges, their strengths, weakness, and see how they can mitigate these. What both parties agree on must be taken seriously and implemented as soon as possible. Both parties can also after critical studies and consultation, agree on where and how the private sector can get involve and participate. This may be different from one utility to the other. Let them also interview the private sector and consider the most qualified with wealth of knowledge and experience.
In all , for the Water Sector to be self sustaining we need the Utilities to gravitate gradually from being Government owned Agencies to full fleshed profitable private companies.
What are your final comments to improve the performances of water utilities?
I only want to say that the government should support the utility. Both the Federal and state government, they should make the utility their priority. Water is life. Everybody needs good water. The utility staff also should be trained. When I travelled outside the country, I gained more knowledge and adapted it to my system where it can work. Also, not everyone can be made the utility head. Let it be people with relevant qualifications and experience. You can’t make an Engineer the head of a hospital. You can not make a scientist a head of a law firm. Put round peg in round hole, this is my advice.
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