By Chimezie Godfrey
The National Orientation Agency (NOA) has flagged off sensitization campaign to end open defecation in the country.
The flag off took place on Tuesday in Abuja, with the theme,”Flag-Off Nationwide Sensitization Campaign on Open Defecation Free Nigeria.”
The Director General, National Orientation Agency, NOA, Dr. Garba Abari, in his remark said the campaign is in furtherance of the agency’s effort to achieve zero open defecation in Nigeria.
Recall that President Bihari recently signed Executive Order 009 specifically targeted at curbing the shame narrative around the world that we are one country where faeces are disposed off in field, forests, open bodies of water, beaches or other open spaces or disposed with sold waste.
Dr Abari who explained that open defecation refers to the condition where faeces are disposed off in fields, forests, open bodies of water, beaches or other open spaces or disposed with solid waste, decried the fact the shameful practice prevails in the country.
“Unfortunately, our country’s status is seen in what the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP) of both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said about us.
“Nigeria is better only eleven LGAs out of the 774 in the country are free of this practice.
“The implication of this practice and lack of sensitization has implication for univeral public health.
“Public experts posit that it is because of open defecation that we still have diseases such as diarrhea, typhoid, cholera, hepatitis, polio among others. Child mortality especially for kids under five years of age are attributable to the open defecation in our land,” the DG said.
Dr Abari disclosed that the campaign which will take off at the end of the week, is aimed at achieving behavioural change, while improving access to good water and sanitation hygiene practice to achieve the Open Defecation Free National Plan.
He said the agency is readily available to deploy its robust structure present in all the 36 states and FCT and the 774 LGAs to promote government policies and programes and ensure citizen buy in and ownership.
He also lamented that lack of sensizatiin has grave implications for public health.
He stressed that it is because of open defecation that Nigeria still have such diseases as choleara, typhoid, child mortality, among many others.
He urged the media to join in the sensitization efforts, and to give adequate coverage to it.
Also speaking, the Minister, Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Engr. Suleiman Adamu, said the campaign is in pursuance of the drive to end the practice of open defecation in the country by the year 2025.
Adamu said the National Sensitization Campaign Programme will be jointly implemented by the Water the Ministry of Water Resources and the National Orientation Agency.
He pointed out that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in May 2019, initiated the campaign to address the unfortunate position Nigeria found herself, as the country with the highest number of persons defecating in the open globally.
The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 is aimed at ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by 2030.
He added that this includes achieving access to adequate and equitable sanitationand hygiene for all and ending open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations.
According to him, besides the exposure to diseases, lack of dignity and inconvenience experienced when practicing open defecation due to non-availability of sanitation facilities.
He notes that women and girls especially, are exposed to violence, including rape, when they have to go out at night to defecate in the open, among other negative impacts.
The Minister stressed that as the focal Ministry for SDG 6, the Federal Ministry of Water Resources is committed to aggressively implementing policies and strategies to ensure that the country achieve this goal.
