NAN-H-68
Water
Dass (Bauchi) March 20,2017 (NAN) Residents of some communities in Dass Local Government Area of Bauchi State say the water project of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), had enhanced their fortunes and reduced cases of water -borne diseases in their communities.
Residents of Gauri, Khamsin and Dule communities, told News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday that the assistance by UNICEF had also helped reduce truancy in schools as their children no longer spent substantial part of their time fetching water from far away streams.
Community leader of Gauri, Malam Salisu Dogari said before the intervention, men, women and children were always engrossed in the search for water, as such all other important activities were sidelined.
“Few years back, members of this community spent most of their precious time searching for water; our children had to trek more than 20km to fetch water for drinking and domestic use.
“The children were out of school for that reason; water-borne diseases were the order of the day.
“We were not able to engage in economic activities to empower ourselves; most times, we were combing the hills in search of streams that bore potable water,” he said.
Mrs Bakowa Garba, a resident of Gauri, said after the provision of boreholes by UNICEF, a lot of women and children took to the petty business of preparing traditional drinks that fetched them money.
“In addition to the boom in traditional drinks business, our children had time to attend schools as against spending time in search of water for their parents.
For Mr Garba Shuaibu, a brick layer and also resident of the village, “gone are the days when households slept in thatched huts due to lack of enough water to even mold local bricks.
“With the availability of water, our block molding business now flourishes, enhancing our economic fortunes and improving our places of abode.
“Our wives have resorted to backyard gardening as a source of income,” he said.
In Khamsin village, Malam Isa Ghani, member of a committee on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), established by Dass Local Government Council, told NAN that before the provision of water by UNICEF to the village, a lot of people had died as a result of water-borne diseases.
“Before the UNICEF intervention, we drank water from the same sources with animals; over the years, we lost no fewer than 100 people in the community to water-borne diseases.
“Diarrhea was practically the most prominent of the diseases in this community, followed by typhoid,” said Ghani, who represents the village in the committee.
Mrs Zainab Musa, a female resident of Khamsin community, told NAN that availability of water had propelled the springing up of other businesses.
“Some of us mold local spaghetti, prepare traditional drinks, ground nut oil, and above all, bought grinding machines, all of which largely rely on water to flourish, ” she said.
In Dule, a community of six settlements, community head, Mr Yahya Aniya, confirmed that the borehole which was the only source of water supply, was provided through UNICEF intervention.
He said it had saved them and their children, the trouble of having to trek four hours to fetch water from a stream.
Member of WASH committee, Ghani, said that the water source had enabled residents to engage in backyard gardening.
“Apart from our personal contributions, we initiated gardening projects through the use of waste water from the hand pump,” he said.
Coordinator of WASH in Dass Local Government Council, Mr Abubakar Ibrahim, said that with the availability of water, the communities had been complying with guidelines on proper hygiene and sanitation.
He said that UNICEF had carried out sensitization campaign in 351 communities of the local government area on how to store potable water and make same safe for drinking over a period of time,” he said.
Mr Drissa Yeo, Specialist on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), UNICEF Bauchi, told NAN that the purpose of the intervention in the communities was to prevent outbreak of water-borne diseases.
He said that after the intervention, members of the communities were sensitized on how to protect water, from access point to point of consumption, also preserve same to avoid contamination.
Yeo assured that UNICEF would sustain its intervention to ensure continued access to potable water in the communities. (NAN)
AE/ASH/ASH