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Tafawa Balewa LG Wash Coordinator and Mai Anguwan Sarkin Yamma
By Akanji Olowolodu, Bauchi
No fewer than 300 communities in Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchi State are suffering from non-availability of safe drinking water thereby endangering the lives of the inhabitants of the areas.
The Council has therefore cried out calling for urgent intervention to save the communities considering that recently, there was reported outbreak of Lassa fever in the area.
The Council has however gained from the African Development Bank (ADB) project under which one 100 villages benefited from a rehabilitation of broken down boreholes.
These facts came to light at a stakeholders forum held at Bununu, headquarters of Tafawa Balewa LGA which was Organized by an NGO known as Women Development Association for self-Sustainance (WODASS) in partnership with WaterAid Nigeria.
The Council’s WASH Coordinator, Malam Garba Yau Jambil who dropped these facts, said that of the 775 Villages in the Local government, 300 Still source water from wells and streams that are unsafe for Human Consumption, considering the threat of Communicable diseases which could pose danger to Human lives.
While Commending the ADB for its magnanimity in bringing succour to the plight of 100 communities in 2022, the WASH Coordinator also thanked WaterAid Nigeria For its Current Hygiene Behavior change (HBC) exercise aimed at encouraging best hygiene practices in Tafawa Balewa LGA,noting that this initiative would help the council to attain open Defecation free status.
In his Remarks, the representative of the traditional leaders in the area, Malam Ibrahim Unar said that the Hygiene behaviour change (HBC) awareness campaign has impacted positively as community members have now realized the Danger posed to human health by open defecation.
He said that Various families have Embarked on Construction of Toilets within households thereby discouraging open defecation.
Malam Ibrahim Umar re-echoed traditional leaders warning that any household head that failed to abide by the directive to construct toilets would be sanctioned.
He pointed out that already, some traditional Leaders in Tafawa Balewa LGA are now on suspension for failure to enforce the directive within their area of jurisdiction.
Also speaking, The programme manager of WODASS, organizers of the stakeholders forum, Mr Ezekiel N. Sukumun appealed to community members in Tafawa Balewa LGA to cultivate the idea of presenting community needs of the people instead of their personal requests arguing that this remained the best option for them to attract genuine assistance from elected representatives.
