…Prof. Joseph Utsev: Open defecation cost Nigeria N455 billion annually
By Dele Ogbodo
The Minister of Environment, Mallam Balarabe Lawal Abbas on Tuesday reiterated that his Ministry is ramping up efforts to present the 2005 national environmental sanitation policy on safe excreta and sewage disposal to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) soon, even as his counterpart in the Water Resources and Sanitation Ministry, Prof. Joseph Utsev, said Nigeria losses N455 billion annually to open defecation.
Balarabe, made the disclosure at the 2023 World Toilet Day (WTD) celebration organized by the Ministries of Environment, Water Resources, Education, Donor Agencies, CSOs and Health Practitioners.
He however, acknowledged that community-based intervention on the control of open defecation as well as the clean and green programmes of the Ministry which are aimed at promoting the provision of safe and adequate toilets in public places and ensuring proper excreta management.
He recalled that WTD is an annual United Nations (UN) observance promoted through a worldwide public campaign that encourages action to tackle the global sanitation crisis, adding that it is marked on 19th November of every year as declared by the UN General Assembly in 2013.
The event he said is to raise awareness on the 4 billion people living without access to safe sanitation, with Nigeria having 48 million.
The Minister, said: “This year’s theme is quite apt as it offers an opportunity for a public campaign that encourages behaviour change for positive action.
“We are just 7 years away from the target year of achieving SDG 6 on safe toilets and water for all by 2030 and as of today, we are seriously off track to meet that target in Nigeria.
“This scenario of leaving so many people behind without safe toilets put in jeopardy the entire 2030 agenda, with the poorest people, particularly women and girls, paying the highest price in terms of poor health, missed education, loss of productivity and general insecurity.
“Today, many people in Nigeria still use the bush and water bodies as their regular means of excreta disposal. Many institutions do not have sanitary facilities and where they exist they are either not functioning or misused.
“Most urban areas do not have sewerage systems and safe collection of sewage, which makes disposal a huge challenge as many of the water bodies including rivers and streams become a repository for sewage and wastewater.”
One of the major consequences of poor excreta and sewage disposal, according to him, is the high rate of diarrhea disease which is the second cause of high morbidity and mortality rates among children under the age of 5.
The persistent re-occurrence of annual incidences of cholera outbreaks in some of our states are also manifestations of inadequate toilet facilities, he added.
He said government need urgent and massive investment and innovation along the entire sanitation service chain, adding that investment in the sanitation sector is good for public health and the economy.
According to him, for instance, every one Naira invested in toilets and sanitation, the Return on that Investment (RoI) is up to five Naira is returned in saved medical costs, better health, increased productivity, education and jobs.
The Federal Government, he explained has demonstrated practical commitment to addressing the sanitation challenges through: “Declaration of state of emergency on water, sanitation and hygiene in the country by President Bola Tinubu and the signing of Executive Order No (EON) 009 on Open defecation free Nigeria by 2025.
“Revision and validation of the 2005 National Environmental Sanitation Policy including its policy guidelines on safe excreta and sewage disposal by my Ministry and national stakeholders.
“I will soon present the revised Policy to the Federal Executive Council for its approval.
“Community-based intervention on the control of open defecation as well as the clean and green programmes of the Ministry which are aimed at promoting the provision of safe and adequate toilets across the country, particularly in public places and ensuring proper excreta management in Nigeria.
“Issues of open defecation in Nigeria will no longer be business as usual as the Ministry will henceforth deploy all its regulatory framework to ensure adequate enforcement of sanitation laws in the country.”
Also speaking at the event, the Minister for Water Resources, Prof. Joseph Terlumun Utsev, said the Ministry is cognizance that sanitation is a public health issue and the cost of poor sanitation pervasive.
The Minister quoted the World Bank’s 2012 report, which estimated that the economic impact of poor sanitation due to the use of unsanitary or shared toilets and open defecation cost Nigeria an estimated N455 billion, which translates to the equivalent to $3 billion in losses annually, with open defecation accounting for a third of this amount.
He said: “These costs include health care, loss of productivity, premature deaths and poor educational outcomes complemented by the social costs that are unquantifiable in monetary terms mainly the loss of dignity, lack of privacy and increased vulnerability to physical attacks and violence especially for women and girls.
“The practice of open defecation is linked to sanitation related diseases which impacts negatively on our socio-economic development and aggravates poverty. Access to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) are basic human rights which are critical to the socio-economic development of any nation.
“It also contributes to human capital development such as early childhood survival, health and educational attainment. Just like other members of the international community, Nigeria is committed to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) of which target 6.2 for Sanitation seeks to “achieve by 2030, access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations.”.
Utsev, acknowledged that government’s commitment is motivated by the realisation that it would contribute significantly to the achievement of our national developmental goals.