By Patricia Amogu
Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA), in partnership with UNICEF, has organised a two-day training for FCT Task Group on Sanitation for Open Defecation Free (ODF) certification.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports the training was held for claiming communities in Kwali Area Council, in collaboration with Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Clean Nigeria, Use the toilet campaign secretariat and Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
NAN also reports that the participants were drawn from the coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), implementing partners, ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) as well as media organisations.
In his opening remarks, Executive Director, FCT RUWASSA, Dr Mohammed Dan-Hassan, noted that the training was a step in the right direction, adding that it was one of the small steps into achieving bigger things.
“I will like to acknowledge the sacrifices that some of you have made and are still making in achieving an open defecation free FCT. This is one of the steps, as individuals, organisations and stakeholders, in the Nigerian project.
“You should be committed to this great course and be resilient and active to achieve our targets. There are key performance indicators (KPIs) used to assess our performance.
“We should leverage the support from our partners and give our best cooperation on this delicate project. The journey is a long one, but we must be ready to achieve our objectives and targets.
“If you cannot do great things, then do small things in a great way and you will be great,” he added.
In her lecture, National Coordinator, Clean Nigeria, Mrs Chizoba Opara, urged the participants to identify problems and proffer solutions while on the field.
“You will have to be observant while taking walks around communities, and you will be carrying out interviews as you get into various households,’’ she said.
Opara explained that the expected outcome of the field work would be to ascertain the status of ODF in Kwali claiming communities.
A WASH Consultant, Mr Nanpet Chuktu, intimated the Task Group members on the protocols for verification and certification of ODF communities, noting that for a community to be certified ODF, all requirements must be satisfactorily met.
He emphasised the mode of operations and checklist to follow while checking WASH COM performance for monitoring, verification, certification and validation of communities.
Head of Department, Sanitation, FCT RUWASSA, Mrs Aisha Bakpet, applauded the genuine efforts of the development partners and the immense contributions of the Task Group members as well as their readiness to jointly achieve RUWASSA’s aims and objectives.
“I am speaking on behalf of the executive director who would have loved to be here for the closing ceremony. I want to thank you all for your great contributions during the course of this training.
“While congratulating you all, I also want to encourage you to do your best to be factual and credible, as you commence this great task,’’ she said.
NAN reports that highpoints of the event were physical and mental exercises and practical activities on the field work, among others. (NAN)
