Trying to haul a full 25-litre jerry can in each hand between rows of empty buildings, the woman stopped to wipe sweat off her face with the edge of her wrapper.
Mama Baby, as she called herself, was fetching water from the borehole in the army barracks of the 244 Recce Battalion, Saki, Oyo State.
Although the massive camp is home to hundreds of soldiers and their families, most of its residents are forced to rely on one hand-pumped borehole sunk some 20 years ago by the troops themselves.
Mama Baby said that, with water such a valuable resource, she would not risk leaving a full jerry can in the street while she took the other home.
The 244 Battalion has struggled with severe water shortages, dilapidated buildings and bad roads, despite vast sums of money pledged by the Nigerian government each year to refurbish military barracks.
The Ministry of Defence and Presidential Committee on Barracks Rehabilitation each year allocate funds for the rehabilitation of dozens of army, air force and navy barracks around the country.
But observers say that such neglect is common in army barracks nationwide.
Quarters depend on rank
Most of the barracks are taken up with other ranks accommodation.
In 244 Battalion, there are 101 blocks of 12 one-bedroom flats for other ranks out of which 76 are inhabited. NCO quarters consist of 50 blocks of two two-bedroom flats and one detached three-bedroom flat for the Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM).
The commissioned officers quarters contain 33 houses, including a fenced and gated residence for the commanding officer.
There is just one medical clinic and one primary school in the barracks. Secondary school students must travel outside the barracks.
Deplorable conditions
Nearly 40 years later, many of the buildings are badly dilapidated and the roads are in a deplorable condition. A number of the habitable buildings still need major works.
Some blocks in the other ranks quarters were renovated in 1998, although the remaining categories were left untouched.
For the next four years, no renovation work was done in spite of the billions of naira allocated for barracks rehabilitation nationwide.
Between 2012 and 2014, the Nigerian army budgeted N4,220,908,807 (21 million US dollars) for barracks rehabilitation.
During the same period, the Presidential Committee on Barracks Rehabilitation (PCBR), a department under the presidency, budgeted N6,688,843,892 (33.4 million dollars) for the rehabilitation of army, navy and air force barracks in the country.
In the same period, the army also allocated N278,548,812 (1.4 million dollars) for the provision of water to army barracks around the country.
Apart from these allocations, the 244 Battalion has had money specifically set aside for it.
In 2012, the PCBR allocated N22,125,000 (110,426 dollars) for renovation works in the barracks, although the following year this figure fell to N3,331,359 (16,600 dollars).
Each year, the government allocates money for so-called constituency projects initiated by lawmakers, such as environmental or economic projects.
In 2014, N150 million (748,649 dollars) was allocated for renovations and road resurfacing at the 244 Battalion as part of these constituency projects.
Despite all this funding, only 18 more buildings were renovated in 2015.
Out of the 101 buildings meant for other ranks, 25 blocks containing 300 one-bedroom flats remained uninhabitable.
The Ministry of Defence refused to respond to a freedom of information about the status of the army barracks rehabilitation projects.
Water shortages remain a problem
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