Nigeria loses $1bn to open defecation yearly – UNICEF

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has called on communities in Anambra State to support efforts in the fight against open defecation across the country.

The Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) specialist, UNICEF, Enugu, Amose Kudzala, made the call in Awka during a stakeholders’ sensitisation meeting using the ODF Roadmap Document in all the three senatorial districts of the state.

Kudzala revealed that out of $3 billion spent by Nigeria on sanitation, according to World Bank statistics, about $1 billion (N315.2) was lost to open defecation annually.

Kudzala further said the alarming figure clearly indicated that the benefits accruable to the Anambra State government through its huge investments in sanitation towards attaining the ODF status far exceeded the cost.

“Total elimination of open defecation would have direct impact on the health and well-being of the people of the state,” he added.

The WASH specialist expressed satisfaction with the achievements the Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Reform Programme (WSSSRP) had recorded in the state through WASH and the European Union, pledging further support for the achievement of total sanitation. Anambra State Commissioner for Power and Domestic Water Development, Mr. Obi Nwankwo, said the state government had developed her own ODF road map to achieve the 2025 target.

Represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mr Douglas Mbah, Nwankwo enjoined the various communities to ensure improved toilet facilities around them.