As part of preparation for this year’s upcoming World Toilet Day, Kano State has attained the status of Open Defecation-Free (ODF) in 26 local government areas.
This was disclosed by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) specialist, Malam Uba Lawal.
The World Toilet Day is an annual United Nations Observance Day promoted through a worldwide public campaign that encourages action to tackle the global sanitation crisis.
Lawal said ‘Safe toilets for all by 2030’ is one of the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 6.
He explained that out of the 44 local governments in Kano State, 26 have fulfilled the requirements of National Task Group on Sanitation (NTGS) for certification of Open DefecationFree (ODF) status.
He also revealed that 8 local governments out of the 26 attained the status recently.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has declared that for millions of people around the world, the lack of access to safe sanitation is a daily struggle, affecting health, education, and economic opportunities.
UNICEF also lamented that poor sanitation increases the risk of life-threatening diseases, especially among children and adolescent girls, while safe and hygienic toilets are a foundation for good public health conditions, vital to reduce diseases, protect water sources, and promote safety, especially for children, women, and girls.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says Nigeria will need to build no fewer than 3.9 million toilets annually to meet the open defecation-free target by 2025.