By Meletus EZE
The Minister of State for Environment, Alhaji Ibrahim Jibril, says access to sanitary facilities remains a mirage to a vast majority of Nigerians.
Jibril, who was represented by Mrs Margaret Akinmuko, the Director, Reform Coordinator and Service Improvement said this in his keynote address at the 2018 World Toilet Day celebration on Monday in Abuja.
It would be recalled that Nov. 19 of every year is marked as World Toilet Day as declared by the United Nations General Assembly in 2013.
He said that about 4.5 billion people in the world live without safe toilet and 892 million still practice open defecation.
“Many people still use bush and water bodies as their regular means for excreta disposal.
“Many institutions do not have sanitary facilities and where they exist, they are either not functioning well or are misused.’’
Jibril said that one of the major consequences of poor excreta disposal was the high rate of diarrhea disease being the cause of the second highest rate of morbidity and mortality among children under the age of five.
“The persistent re-occurrence of annual incidences of cholera outbreak in some of our states and the occurrence and re-occurrence of other excreta related diseases are also manifestations of inadequate toilet facilities.
“Yet this could also be prevented through safe excreta disposal by every individual.
“I therefore challenge all stakeholders on environment, particularly sanitation at national, state and local government levels, to not only talk, but take practical steps and actions as agents of change to ensure everyone has access to eco-friendly sanitary facilities.’’
Mr Leon Aliboh, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry represented by Mohammed Yakubu, the Director Special Duties said the event was another effort by the government to promote sound environmental sanitation practices among the populace.
“Sanitation, like education and health is a fundamental building block in the fight against national poverty and preventable diseases.
“The ministry in its effort to improve the sanitation situation of the country is presently reviewing the 2005 National Environmental Sanitation Policy document to international best practices.
“This will address and harmonise grey areas of concern with stakeholders in the present policy document for easy implementation,” he said.
