OAU Rotaract, SDG Youth Club Launch Clean Hall Water Tank Project at Postgraduate Hall

          Israel Bankole

The Rotaract Club of Obafemi Awolowo University, in partnership with the OAU SDG Youth Club, carried out a water-tank cleaning exercise yesterday at the Murtala Muhammad Postgraduate Hall of Residence. 

The exercise, which began around 8 a.m. on Saturday, 29th November, formed part of a broader sanitation initiative earlier published by the ICONS Organization. Although the original plan was to clean tanks in all nine OAU-owned halls of residence, the organizers were only able to complete the work at the Postgraduate Hall after facing several challenges that limited the scope of the operation.

According to the clubs, the activity was conceived to address long-standing concerns about water quality in campus hostels and to promote healthier living conditions for students. A flier had previously circulated on social media and within the halls announcing the “Clean Hall Water Tanks Project” as a one-day effort that would cover halls such as Akintola, Fajuyi, Moremi, ETF, Alumni, Awolowo, Mozambique, and Angola alongside the Postgraduate Hall. However, it became clear during the execution of the project that the level of dirt and sediment inside the tanks was far greater than expected.

Speaking Samson Adepoju, the Foundation Chair of the Rotary Club, OAU, explained that the unexpected condition of the tanks slowed down the operation significantly. He noted that the volunteers had to improvise and work more rigorously than planned. “We didn’t know the tanks were very dirty underneath, so we had to get brushes to scrub them thoroughly,” he said. Adepoju added that the teams had hoped to extend the cleaning to other halls on the same day, but the amount of work required in the Postgraduate Hall alone made that impossible. He emphasized that they plan to return to complete the remaining halls in subsequent phases, although no date has been set.

One of the volunteers who participated in the cleaning expressed her excitement about being part of the project. She described the work as demanding but fulfilling, especially since the tank she cleaned was, in her words, “very dirty.” She noted that scrubbing it took considerable effort, but the experience left her proud of contributing to a project that directly affects the wellbeing of students. She added that if such cleaning exercises are conducted every session, students living in the halls would have more reliable access to clean and hygienic water.

While responding to inquiries about reports of another group allegedly carrying out tank-cleaning activities in Awo Hall, particularly around Blocks Five and Six, the organizers said they were unaware of any other team working on similar projects at the moment. Nevertheless, they reaffirmed their commitment to promoting water hygiene on campus and expressed appreciation for the volunteers and partners who made the first phase possible.

Although the project did not reach the broad coverage initially intended, the cleaning of the Postgraduate Hall tanks marked a meaningful start. The Rotaract Club and the OAU SDG Youth Club emphasized that their long-term goal remains to support sustainable sanitation and healthier living environments for students across all halls of residence, aligning their efforts with global development objectives focused on clean water, wellbeing, and community partnership.