NAN-AE-4
Sanitation
By Tosin Kolade
Abuja, Feb. 8, 2018 (NAN) The National Task Group on Sanitation (NTGS) has called for a national sanitation strategy to help households across the country to own safe, durable and cost-effective toilets.
The group’s Chairman, Mr Emmanuel Awe, made the call in Abuja on Thursday at the monthly NTGS meeting for sanitation stakeholders.
According to him, the sanitation situation in the country shows the need for deliberate action to reduce preventable diseases.
Awe, however, said the National Database on Open Defecation (OD) indicated that no fewer than 13,000 communities had achieved the open defecation-free status.
He said that the development had led to significant improvements in overall sanitation coverage in the country.
Awe called for the development of a private sector-led supply chain to lead the campaign on creating attitudinal change messages on the benefits of living in a hygienic environment.
He said that with renewed commitment and partnership of all stakeholders, communities would be able to move up the sanitation ladder to break the cycle of disease transmission, thus ensuring healthful lifestyles for the citizens.
He said that health, education, nutrition, social and market activities had been affected by poor sanitation, adding that within the next 15 years, more than 54.6 million people were expected to desist from open defecation.
Awe announced that the NTGS had concluded plans to host a roundtable on Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) to seek novel ways through which individuals could take ownership of sanitation and hygiene projects.
According to him, the conference will be an opportunity for relevant stakeholders to share ideas on how to promote healthy environment and reduce outbreak of water-related diseases.
He said that the Bauchi State Government was ready to host the conference.
Awe said that the event would also be an opportunity to celebrate Dass Local Government Area (LGA) of Bauchi State as the second LGA to be declared Open Defecation-Free (ODF) after Obanliku LGA in Cross River.
“We have received the approval of the Bauchi State Government to host the CLTS conference in March.
‘‘It will also be an opportunity to celebrate one of its local governments which has attained the ODF status,’’ he added.
Awe said that the CLTS approach underscored the need for community members to take due ownership of interventions aimed at improving their well-being via behavioural change and reducing open defecation.
Mrs Yemisi Akpa, a member of the NTGS, who spoke about Nigeria’s Scorecard on Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), stressed the need for a national environment that was conducive to efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on water and sanitation.
She said there must be political commitment, increased funding, strengthened capacity and collaboration for achieving sanitation and hygiene for all targets by 2030. (NAN)
TAK/MOL/OOK
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Edited by Mustapha Lamidi and Dayo Komolafe