Clean Nigeria Initiative: FG Tackles Cholera From Root, Intensifies Bid To End Open Defecation
...As Shettima demands strategic partnerships, deployment of technology
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The Federal Government has commenced measures to combat the cholera epidemic ravaging the country by tackling the root causes, including open defecation.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, while inaugurating the Steering Committee for the “Clean Nigeria: Use the Toilet” Campaign, reiterated the administration’s commitment to end open defecation by 2025.
In a statement issued by his media aide, Stanley Nkwocha, the VP urged the committee to “align with broader government priorities and interventions in areas such as poverty reduction, education, and economic growth.” He stressed the need to mobilise strategic stakeholders and leverage technology to boost the nation’s sanitation landscape.
The VP expressed confidence that the committee will “craft solutions to handle wastewater management, contaminated water sources, and open defecation” across the country.
Shettima stressed the need to harness resources in the public and private sectors, especially by carrying out innovative research and utilizing technology for real-time monitoring, data collection, and impact assessment.
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Ali Pate, recalled that the Federal Executive Council recently commissioned a cabinet committee to tackle the cholera outbreak, which has affected 33 states with 2,000 cases and 33 deaths.
“Open defecation is part of the drivers of this Cholera outbreak that we are seeing. But we also have a good example of a sub-national unit doing very well in Jigawa State, which has been declared open defecation-free,” Pate said.
Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Joseph Terlumun Utsev, presented a report on the “Clean Nigeria: Use the Toilet Campaign,” which aims to eradicate open defecation in Nigeria by 2025.
The report revealed that approximately 47 million Nigerians, constituting 23% of the population, engaged in open defecation in 2018. The Minister warned that open defecation has economic, social, and health impacts on the country.
