By SADIQ ABUBAKAR, Maiduguri –
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has called on Nigerian governments and community stakeholders to build toilets in both public and private schools, markets, motor parks, office complexes, public places, business and other commercial places to promote behavioural change among the people in the society.
It also suggested that national and state budgets must reflect the importance of toilets and water sources to the health of children and workforce while prioritizing investments in physical and human resources to scale up existing programmes targeting expansion of toilet and water services.
The Officer in Charge , UNICEF Chief of Maiduguri Office Field Office, Dr. Clement Adams stated this on Friday in Maiduguri during a media orientation programme to commemorate the 2021 World Toilet Day.
“With this programme, I trust the media will take the urgency of the moment forward . We must put our money where our mouth is. It is more cost effective to construct more toilets for conflict affected people than to treat endless flares of cholera outbreaks with unnecessary mortalities”.
“Inability to access toilets is costly. It robs children of their health leading to deaths. When people die of cholera complications, children are sadly stripped of parental care and the most basic protection,” Dr. Adams said.
He assured that UNICEF would continue to work with the state governments and RUWASSA in the North East sub region of the country to promote the wellbeing of conflict affected people and safeguard the rights, life and good health of conflict affected children.
The Officer in-Charge added that UNICEF would continue to advocate for one more toilet and borehole until every IDPs camp , home, business premises, motor park/garage, school, office and market have adequate sanitation and hygiene facilities that would safeguard the wellbeing of the people in the society.
He said it is also important to take the issue of COVID-19 vaccination more seriously in the overall interest of the population to safeguard wellbeing of the people in communities.
“UNICEF has also taken a practical steps towards ending open defecation and achieving Open Defecation Free Nigeria project in 2025 by constructing more toilets and water sources , especially, among the most vulnerable population in IDPs Camps and host communities”, Dr Clement added.
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