The United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, has stressed the need for the public and the private sector to strengthen efforts in ending open defecation in Nigeria.
While expressing concern over inadequate public toilets in most localities, the Chief of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene, WASH, for UNICEF Nigeria, Jane Bevan, urged that all sectors collaborate in achieving the goal.
Bevan, who stated this at a two-day media dialogue held in Lagos with the theme “Ending Open Defecation in Nigeria and Elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs),” maintained that “We are not just working toward an open defecation-free Nigeria; we are building a sustainable future where improved sanitation drives health, economic growth, and environmental resilience.
“We need the government, partners, and the private sector to join us in making Nigeria open defecation-free.”
The media dialogue was organised by the Oyo State Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, RUWASSA, in collaboration with UNICEF.
The UNICEF Chief added that “we also need the media to assist us in sensitising the public to the dangers of open defecation.
“By leveraging the power of information, we can create a movement that not only raises awareness but also translates into tangible actions for ODF at the community level.”
On her part, the Deputy Director, ‘Clean Nigeria: Use the Toilet’ Campaign, Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, Mrs Chizoma Opara, lamented that 48 million Nigerians still defecate openly.
According to her, by addressing open defecation, Nigeria could reduce the transmission of NTDs and experience improved sanitation and hygiene practices.
‘’Open defecation, a practice that persists in many parts of our country, with about 48 million persons engaging in the act in Nigeria (WASHNORM 2021), is a sanitation and hygiene-related issue and a significant contributor to the spread of NTDs.
“Diseases like onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, trachoma, lymphatic filariasis, soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH), etc. are transmitted through contaminated soil and faeces, perpetuating a cycle of poverty, malnutrition, and ill health.
Also, the Chief Corporate Services Officer, IHS Nigeria, Dapo Otunla, stated that “We see what goes on in rural areas on a daily basis. When people talk about the need to end open defecation, the need to improve awareness about sanitation, hygiene, and waterborne diseases, and the need to eradicate NTDS, We see these things at the micro level; it is real.
“The term neglected tropical diseases, I think it places primarily at the doorstep of the public sector in the recognition of the fact that the public sector cannot do it all by itself and, by implication, the private sector needs to partner with them. In a lot of areas, it is not about neglect by the people who are affected; it is about awareness.
Similarly, the media dialogue also featured popular Nigerian singer and UNICEF Champion, Waje, who urged her colleagues in the entertainment industry to use their platforms to raise awareness about sanitation and hygiene.
According to her, influential figures can make a significant impact by advocating for improved sanitation practices across the country.
Public, private partnership against open defecation, NTDs elimination essential- UNICEF