The Federal Government on Monday, declared Dass Local Government Area in Bauchi State Open Defecation Free (ODF).
The Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu, did the official declaration of the ODF status in Bauchi.
Dr Musa Ibrahim, the Permanent Secretary in the ministry represented the minister at the occasion.
He said the feat was achieved in partnership with other implementing partners, adding that it showed that Nigeria was close to meeting the ODF target by 2025.
Adamu said the Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Diagnostic Report by the World Bank showed that Nigeria had made steady progress in the provision of safe water.
He, however, expressed concern that the nation had not made corresponding progress in sanitation and hygiene sector.
The minister, who said efforts in the past to address sanitation challenges yielded minimal results, assured that that a critical look at the issues showed that it would not be business as usual.
He said the ministry had launched the Partnership for Expanded Water Sanitation and Hygiene (PEWASH) programme to seek stakeholders’ commitment to improve access to WASH, especially in the rural areas.
The minister said the ministry had started providing sanitation and hygiene facilities in the country with special consideration for the North-East, as part of its responses to the humanitarian needs of the people.
“The benefits of access to WASH facilities, especially of living in an Open Defecation Free environment, impacts on the education, health, security and socio-economic wellbeing of the people.
“In this regard, I wish to commend the people of Dass Local Government Area for their commitment toward behavioural change,’’ he said.
He urged the people of the area to be steadfast in such behaviour, adding that a relapse would deny them the inherent benefits of WASH facilities.
Mr Garba Magaji, Permanent Secretary, Bauchi Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA), said the celebration marked a significant milestone in the history of the state over 15 years ago.
Magaji said with collaborative partnership with other stakeholders, the state had been able to have 351 communities working with hygiene promoters to sustain practices through the Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach.
He said hand washing, at critical times with tippy taps, was now being practiced in 70 schools, with no fewer than 21,198 households imbibing same practice for overall hygiene promotion.
The permanent secretary said it was worthy of note that no one in the entire local government defecates in the open.
He asserted that the impact was already being felt with the reduction in visits to hospitals and an increase in pupils’ attendance and completion of schools.
Magaji pledged the commitment of the agency to sustain the ODF status by moving up toward attaining the total sanitation status of improving the quality of households and public toilets, and over hygiene promotion in the state.
Mr Suleiman Ayuba, Bauchi State Commissioner for Water Resources, said the achievement was worthy of celebration.
He said the feat was made possible with support from the U.K. Department for International Development/UNICEF in its Sanitation, Hygiene and Water in Nigeria (SHAWN) project.
Ayuba thanked the donor agencies and partners for their commitment toward scaling up sanitation and hygiene in the state.
The commissioner said that Warji and Gamawa Local Government Areas were also working to meet the ODF status.
Ayuba said with the advent of the Sustainable Development Goals,(SDGs), there was the need to collaborate with relevant stakeholders to scale up access to water and sanitation in all parts of the country.
This, the commissioner said, would go a long way to promote wellbeing and reduce preventable illnesses and deaths, especially among under-five children.
Mr Drissa Yeo, of UNICEF Nigeria Field Office, said the agency was honoured to be part of the celebration, following the concerted efforts put in over the years.
Yeo commended the Bauchi State Government and the people of Dass Local Government Area for their commitment to move up the sanitation ladder.
He said that their efforts had led to more than seven more councils benefiting from the SHAWN project.
He stated that the impacts of the interventions cut across all the 351 communities, institutions and public places in the state.
Yeo said there was a reduction in cases of water and sanitation-related diseases among the populace.
He called on the state government to sustain the momentum to ensure that the people did not return to practicing open defecation.
“UNICEF, therefore, calls on government, communities, religious and traditional leaders and all stakeholders to maintain the momentum and ensure this enviable achievement is sustained.”
There are certain protocols and guidelines that must be followed before a community or local government area is declared ODF.
They include the construction and use of clean hygienic latrines and having hand washing facilities at the toilets with access to soap or ash.
Nigeria developed the National Open Defecation Road Map to eliminate ODF in2025. (NAN)
