The Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi on Tuesday declared open a 2-day workshop on the total eradication of open defecation in the state.
The workshop was organized by the Ministry of Water Resources, Enugu State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, ENRUWASSA, and Ugo’s Touch of Life Foundation, U-TOLF in collaboration with UNICEF at Bon Sunshine Hotel, Enugu to develop a roadmap for the attainment of the state’s goal on Open Defecation Free, ODF, by 2025;
The two-day workshop is set for the actualization of improved sanitation and hygienic status for the state as well as behavioral change amongst the people and communities for healthy living.
Declaring open the workshop, Gov. Ugwuanyi discloses thus, “available statistics indicate that about 46 million Nigerians practice open defecation. Such an awkward act impacts negatively on the health, educational outcomes and socio-economic life of the people”.
“In line with the revised global targets as set by United Nations, the Federal Government of Nigeria committed to end open defecation in Nigeria by 2025, hence my administration is determined to domesticate this vision and align our actions to achieving this national goal,” he reiterated.
Consequently, to achieve this goal in our state, my administration declares a state of emergency on Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, WASH, sector in the state.
We have also inaugurated the inter-ministerial steering Committee for revitalizing the WASH sector to lead coordinated actions in the state.
Ugwuanyi further stated that Enugu State Government has signed up to the national Partnership for Expanded Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene, PEWASH, strategy.
PEWASH is a national collaboration for a multi-sector partnership designed to provide opportunity for the water and sanitation sector to leverage expertise, technology and financial resources from all levels of government, development partners, private sector, civil society and community, to improve the sector.
The state Governor however called on private sector organizations including Rotary Club and religious organizations to help drive the behavioral change needed for attainment of these goals.
Speaking on behalf of UNICEF, the organization’s WASH Manager in Enugu, Ms. Mamita Bora Thakkar, thanked Gov. Ugwuanyi’s administration for its commitment to the attainment of the national goal of open defecation-free status by 2025, stressing that the governor’s presence, support and inspiration were exceptional and commendable.
Thakkar reaffirms UNICEF commitments to providing technical support to the federal and state governments for the actualization of the set goals of the ODF Roadmap.
In his remarks, Dubem Onyia, Special Adviser to the Governor on Water Resources, revealed that the present administration has undertaken concrete steps towards the fulfillment of its obligation to participate in the PEWASH process and tap into the Federal Government’s National Wash Action Plan.
On the current state of Enugu State on open defecation, Onyia revealed that over 44 communities across 5 LGAs had been declared open defecation free; the LGAs are Igbo-Etiti, Nkanu East, Igbo-Eze South, Igbo-Eze North and Udenu LGAs.
