Nigeria’s lack of sanitation facilities

Mr Saaondo Anom, a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) specialist, said recently at a workshop organised by the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and WASH in Enugu that over 113 million Nigerians relieve themselves in the open because they lack sanitation facilities. He said the problem is further aggravated by the fact that about 63 […]

Mr Saaondo Anom, a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) specialist, said recently at a workshop organised by the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and WASH in Enugu that over 113 million Nigerians relieve themselves in the open because they lack sanitation facilities. He said the problem is further aggravated by the fact that about 63 million Nigerians have no access to improved sanitation. Although these figures look exaggerated, the reality is that millions of Nigerians answer the call of nature, some, sometimes, in full view of the public, either out of ignorance or because they have absolutely nowhere else to do so. It is a crying shame that our country has been turned into one giant public lavatory.
Mr Anom has merely highlighted what we, including those in authorities, all know about. Surprisingly, the various levels of government of our country, especially the local government whose direct responsibility it is to take care of such matters, have lacked the will to enunciate and execute policies that will place emphasis on the provision of sanitation facilities and public awareness of personal hygiene. The lack of will may not be unconnected with the vote-catching inclination of our elected officials who place a higher emphasis on gigantic socio-economic infrastructure that can be seen to the neglect of other equally important amenities like sanitation facilities that cannot be reckoned with as “legacy projects”.
This is unfortunate because open defecation poses severe health hazards to the population. According to the specialist, open relieving is very dangerous because just one gram of faeces can contain 10 million viruses, one million parasites, 1,000 parasite cysts and 1,000 of what he calls parasite eyes released into the environment which are responsible for several illnesses and diseases that bedevil many communities.
This warning about the serious danger we are living in could not have come at a better time than now when there is a world-wide concern about public health issues in most parts of the developing world. We should therefore regard this alert as a wake-up call for us to pay attention especially to our environment for in most cases the diseases that afflict us such as malaria, typhoid, Lassa fever etc. are caused by poor environmental sanitation and the lack of discipline and sense of decency on the part of most of our compatriots.
Only two weeks ago this paper had cause to write an editorial drawing attention to another issue of grave public health concern. An expert had warned that the country was witnessing rising cases of non-communicable diseases such as cancer, renal failure, hypertension, obesity and stroke. Given this unfortunate development, we cannot afford to allow a fertile ground for the growth of communicable diseases which arise from a poor concern for the environment. We certainly cannot survive under a combined assault of communicable and non-communicable diseases. Poor lifestyle choices and equally poor attention given to the environment, both of which give rise to the two health afflictions, look like irresponsible self-inflicted traumas.
Apart from the well- known health hazards it poses, open defecation in these time and age also give our country a very poor image. That is why the authorities, should, without any further delay, give serious attention to the building of public toilets in our towns, cities and villages. There will be nothing wrong if such public toilets are commercialized to ensure their proper maintenance and sustainability. This should be complemented by a vigorous public enlightenment campaign to educate the populace on the need for them to exercise personal discipline and display decency when it comes to answering the call of nature. The absence of public toilets should not be a justification for indecency. We cannot continue to live with the danger and shame of open defecation. Even some lower animals do not do that.