UNICEF supporting toilet owners’ approach to attain open defecation free status in Bauchi

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Toilets at a school 

By Akanji Alowolodu, Bauchi

Open defecation is the act of passing excreta in open air locations instead of in hygienic, covered locations. The phenomenon does not just occur in the rural areas of Nigeria but also in the cities, and among the educated class in public tertiary institutions, business and residential areas.

It is estimated that not fewer than 48 million Nigerians defecate openly in and on bushes, gutters, sidewalks, motor parks, recreation parks, rivers and streets amongst others.

Some efforts have been made over the decades to reduce the cases of open defecation in Nigeria.

Regrettably, they remain mainly efforts, with only 105 of 774 local governments in the country free of open defecation, a development that bears severe socio-economic losses for the country.

Records have shown that in October 2019, Nigeria became the number one open defecation nation globally, passing India as it is estimated that not fewer than 50 million Nigerians (or 10 million households) defecate in the open.

The question remains, how did Nigeria overtake India? This is a matter of serious concern considering that, India has a population of 1.353 billion people and 3.287 million km2 land area, against Nigeria’s 200 million people and 923,769km2 land area.

It took seriousness, determination and great efforts for India to improve. Now that Nigeria is where India used to be on this index, it will need do similar things – but even more seriously.

In Nigeria, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Nigeria will need to build not fewer than 3.9 million toilets annually in order to meet the ending open defecation practice by 2025 target.

It was for that reason that the Bauchi Field Office of UNICEF, organized a media dialogue to commemorate the World Toilet Day, 2023 held at Azare, headquarters of Katagum LGA of Bauchi State which was recently validated and certified open defecation free (ODF).

Speaking during the dialogue, the Officer in Charge (OIC) of Bauchi Field Office, Dr Clement Adams, said that the availability of improved toilet in schools, public spaces, homes, and health facilities is critical to discouraging open defecation, saying that, “Economically incentivizing sanitation through the approach of toilet business owners, creates jobs and improves income generation while leading us to our goal to become open defecation free.”

The UNICEF OIC congratulated the people and government of Katagum LGA on the attainment of open-defecation-free status saying that “it is a testament that when we work together, we can achieve great strides.”

He stressed that, “The achievement in Katagum LGA needs to be replicated across the country. Out of 774 LGAs in the country, only 105 have been validated ODF. I welcome you all to this event to commemorate the World Toilet Day and to also celebrate this achievement with the people of Katagum while championing the call for increased action to promote healthy, clean, and safe communities by enhancing access to sanitation facilities.”

Adams explained that the World Toilet Day is celebrated every year to bring attention to the undeniable importance of safe and hygienic toilets in our daily lives, especially in terms of health, education and of course, socio-economic development.

For the 2023 WTD, the theme is: ‘Accelerating Change’ to highlight the journey towards achieving “SDG 6- Clean Water and Sanitation” stressing that, “We are about seven years away from 2030 – the global target for the SDGs. We must therefore reinvigorate our efforts if we must meet the sanitation target of SDG 6 – safe toilets and water for all by 2030.”

He also said that, the access to safe and clean toilets prevents the spread of diseases; the access to safe toilet means children, especially girls, and women are protected from the risks of attacks and abuse if they had to go into bushes to defecate; access to basic WASH services is integral to school enrolment, attendance, retention, and completion – the benefits are numerous.”As you will learn later during this event, the work of community-based structures such as the WASH committees or WASHCOMS, is integral to promoting and attaining an open defecation free status,” he stressed.

The UNICEF, Bauchi Field Office OIC said that, “ODF status is not an end. It is a means to an end. This means we must sustain the actions which attained for us, ODF in Katagum LGA and other LGAs in Bauchi state. Because if we do not, the achievement we celebrate today may be lost.”

He said that, “Therefore, I charge all relevant stakeholders including the LGA leaders, traditional and religious leaders, WASHCOMs, mother groups, school authorities and everyone who joined us to make this ODF status possible not to rest on their oars. We must continue to encourage and enforce basic hygiene practices and policies so that we do not relapse nor lose this achievement.”

According to him, “In Bauchi state, Katagum is the Eighth LGA to be validated ODF out of 20 LGAs. We still have work to do. The approaches we used across the eight LGAs must be strengthened and upscaled to ensure that we make Bauchi state ODF.”

Adams said that, “At UNICEF, our partnership with the state government remains intact to ensure that we build a healthy society for every child to thrive and survive in. We are delighted to work with the Bauchi state government to achieve this feat in Katagum; and we are committed to strengthening this partnership.”

He added that,” We are grateful to our multilateral partners including FCDO, Lixil, WaterAid, and a host of others who have supported in different ways…”

“Before I go, let me remind us of the story of the hummingbird. In the ancient story, a hummingbird does what she can to fight a great fire – carrying droplets of water in her beak. Her actions – even though small – are helping solve a big problem,” he added.

The UNICEF OIC concluded saying that, “Everyone can do something to tackle the sanitation crisis. You can be like the hummingbird. The more ‘hummingbirds’ there are, the bigger the impact. We all have a role to play.!”

In his remarks, Bauchi State Commissioner of Water Resources, Abdulrazak Nuhu Zaki stated that, World Toilet Day is observed on the 19 November of every year to create awareness on the need of having and using toilets to people living without access to safely managed sanitation facilities.

The Commissioner added that It is all about taking action to tackle the global sanitation crisis and achieved Sustainable Development Goal 6 which is Sanitation and Water for all by 2030.

He explained that this year’s campaign theme ‘Accelerating change as sustainable Development Goal 6 is badly off track and it is hindering progress on the 2030 agenda opining that to achieve this in the stipulated time frame, all stakeholders must double their efforts before this can be achieved.

According the Commissioner, World Toilet day exist to inform, engage and inspire people to take action towards achieving the goal.

He stressed that, “Toilets are important because access to a safe functional toilet has a positive impact on public health, human dignity and personal safety, especially for females sanitation system that do not have safely manage excreta allow the spread of diseases like soil transmitted diseases and water related diseases such as cholera, diarrhea, typhoid fever, dysentery, neglected tropical diseases among others.”

Zaki further explained that in effort for accelerating access to safely manage sanitation facilities in Bauchi Local Government Area, the Member representing Bauchi Federal Constituency, Alhaji Aminu Aliyu Garu donated 1,000 pieces of Sato toilet pans to households in Bauchi last Sunday 12th November, 2023 and promised for more of such gesture.

The Commissioner who was represented by the General Manager of Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RUWASSA), Adamu Sabo, disclosed that the state government is determined to work for the actualization of SDGs 6.2 target and overall the attainment of state wide ODF by 2025.

He also pointed out that it is important to note that the state government was able to deliver 8 LGAs. As LGA ODF wide, these includes Dass, Warji, Shira, Gamawa, Bogoro, Ganjuwa, Toro and Katagum LGAs. Additional 5934 communities were delivered ODF while two other LGAs were at different level of becoming ODF that is Bauchi and Zaki LGAs. As one of the sustainability process, the state government identified and trained private entrepreneurs on sanitation marketing for improved latrine construction at households and public places like markets and motor parks.

According to him, 194 toilets business owners, (TBOs), 582 masons and 116 toilets. investors were trained on improved latrine construction both at household and public places across the state.

As a result of the institutional formation and capacity building to the TBOs, Masons and Toilet investors, 113,092 improved toilets were constructed across the state.

Awareness were created through promotional activities by the government and toilet business owners on the need of improve latrine uptake and there is high demand for improve latrine by household, however, inadequate funds from household and TBOS becomes a bottleneck.

The TBOS were organized and linked to micro-finance institutions where they access funds for improve latrine construction on revolving basis and for business expansion by the TBOs.

The issuance of revolving loan to households by MFIs Fast Track improved latrine uptake while construction and usage of improve latrine is a dignity, pride, disease prevention economy prevention of water pollution to all.

He therefore, urged all to use improved latrine for fecal management just as he extended the state government’s appreciation to UNICEF for its continued support to people of Bauchi State particularly women and children.

The Coordinator of Water, Sanitation and Health (WASH) Unit in Katagum, Bauchi State, Saidu Mohammed Alkali, then gave insights on how the Local Government Area was certified Open Defecation Free (ODF).Katagum joined Dass, Warji, Gamawa, Ganjuwa, Shira, Bogoro and Toro as the eighth Local Government Areas out of 20 in the state to be certified ODF.

Mohammad who spoke glowingly on ODF achievement by the L.G.A, said that the feat was achieved due to massive community mobilization that brought together many stakeholders to raise people’s awareness of and demand for ODF as well as establishment of WASH Committees also known as WASHCOM , through UNICEF interventions, communities in Katagum were mobilised on the dangers of open defecation.

He further said that mobilisation was done through a joint effort of UNICEF, Bauchi State Rural Water Supply Agency (RUWASSA), Katagum WASHUNIT and other stakeholders and the community as a whole using several strategies saying, “The first was the community – led total sanitation (CLTS) approach.”

According to him, “The CLTS approach was to facilitate the communities to conduct their own appraisal and analysis of open defecation. People were mobilized to identity and find solution to their sanitation and hygiene need.”

Umar Shira, UNICEF Focal person for Bauchi Radio Corporation (BRC) spoke to participants at the Media Dialogue saying that the CLTS approach was a driving force that ensured ODF in Katagum.

He explained that, “The CLTS focuses on behavioral change needed to ensure real and sustainable improvements-investing in community mobilization instead of hardware, and shifting the focus from toilet construction for individual households to the creation of open defecation free communities.”

According to him, the CLTS approach also raised awareness that even if a minority of people continued to defecate in the open everyone was at risk of disease stressing that the approach was result-oriented in that it used participatory methodologies and processes, including mapping and transect walk, to facility communities to analysis their own sanitation practice and fecal oral pathways.

Shira added that, “During this process, called Triggering, communities came to the realization they were eating each other’s faeces in the communities thereby taking action to become open defecation free. CLTs triggered communities’ desire for collective change, propelled the people of Katagum into action and encouraged innovation, mutual support and appropriate local solution.

“As a result of the mobilisation, people in the communities took greater ownership and sustainability. They were engaged through the establishment of a WASH committee (WASHCOM) and training of its members on their roles and management of water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities,” he disclosed.

The community members were trained to ensure ownership and sustainability of WASH interventions as well as the disease causing pathogens that originate from fasces which can passed from an infected person to a healthy person via various routes, he added.

He explained that systematic and planned hygiene promotion were  also done in practical ways to enable people to take action to prevent water, sanitation, and hygiene related diseases to facilitate community participation and accountability.

During hygiene promotion community leaders, traditional leaders, and opinion leader that included women, youth group, WASHCOM and other state holders in the community met and a cluster of 20 house hold was made.

The clusters were overseen by volunteer hygiene proprietors for action on hygiene related issues such as domains of hygiene, effective hand washing, critical times of hand washing, among other, he added.

He further said that to ensure safe water, awareness campaigns were carried out in communities on clear concept of what constituted ‘safe’ drinking water if they had been exposed to poor quality water in the past.

The water chain – the water source, transport and point of use –were the target of awareness creation.

“At the end, a test for microbial contamination was made using H2s vial which indicated if there was contamination in the water or not. The campaigns for water, sanitation and hygiene in schools (WASA) were done with focus on the development of life skills. The mobilization and involvement of parents, communities, governments and institutions to work together to improve hygiene, water and sanitation condition in order to ensure open defecation free communities,” he said.

He added that, “It focused on improving WASH in schools so as to ensure good health of students to fight the spread of infectious diseases.”

Auwalu Ali is a Toilet Business Owner (TBO) at the popular Central Market in Azare, Katagum Local Government Area of Bauchi State. He is so excited that his improved toilet business has contributed to Katagum LGA being certified and validated as Open Defecation Free (ODF).

One thing that strikes a visitor to the toilet, is the hygienic and odorless aura of the public toilet owned by Ali which also has bathing facilities and clearly designated compartments for male and female users.

The facility was visited by a team of Journalists in Katagum as part of efforts to commemorate the World Toilet Day (WTD) celebrated on November 19 to bring attention to the importance of safe and hygienic toilets.

Ali’s facility, called, Sawaba, is one of the five public toilets constructed under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) by the Bauchi State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, (RUWASSA) with support from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Katagum LGA.

“There is provision of Solar powered boreholes for water supply in the toilet for users. We operate this facility till 10 pm in the night and even if someone that wants to use the facility does not have money, we allow him to use it for free. This part of our gesture to discourage defecating in the open,” he said.

Ali said that TBOs and communities in Katagum LGA were initially less supportive of the idea saying, “At first when the team approached us with the idea of public toilets to address open defecation we didn’t understand it and we initially didn’t welcome the idea.”

Ali, trained under the PPP in the Katagum LGA recalled that, “But today we are glad we accepted it because it has transformed our lives. We know now that improved toilets can transform lives and after awareness was created, things have improved.”

According to him, “Since the construction of the toilet in 2018 and when my business commenced in 2019, people no longer defecate openly around the Central market area in Azare. It was terrible in the past because when the market closed, people usually came to defecate in the area and the whole place was usually messed up.”

Ali’s public toilet is opened to the public as early 7 am and closes 10 pm each day with four staff who ensure that it is kept hygienic on daily basis saying that, “We usually charge between N50 and N100 depending on the type of service rendered. I ensure that the toilet is hygienic because of the large number of people coming to the market in the area.”

Besides capacity building, Ali said that RUWASSA and partners, constructed solar borehole in the toilets to ensure steady water supply for the facility.

However, the major challenge of Ali’s public toilet is that the facility is not friendly to physically challenge.

It was also observed that it had only one entrance through which both male and female use to access the facility.

By the norms and tradition, some female users might be uncomfortable using a single entrance with users.

“Despite the fact that the toilet was constructed about five years ago, how you see it today showed that the proprietor had been able to properly manage it. That is why people are still patronizing it and that is something that we oriented them,” he said.

The Acting General Manager of RUWASSA, Adamu Sabo assured that the challenged would be addressed Disclosing that no fewer than 194 TBOs were trained across the 20 LGAs in the state.

According to him, “In addition, TBOs were identified and trained under the PPP in 2022. Some of them are now in business while others are yet to commence perhaps because of issue of funding.”

He assured that user-friendly design of public toilets, particularly for women, girls, and persons with disabilities was being considered saying that, “From what we saw in the design it is something that will serve all categories of people, that is it will be inclusive.”

Sabo added that, “After having the new model validated, we will pilot it somewhere in the state by RUWASSA or stakeholders that are interested in constructing toilets in their LGAs.

“At the onset the PPP arrangement that had not be taken into conservation it was after using the facility that we realized that was need to construct toilets that are all inclusive. That’s why we are coming with new designs that will accommodate the needs of all,” he stressed.

He assured that the state government was working round the clock to ensure Bauchi meets the SDG target in 2030 saying that, “We have almost 10 LGAs that are ODF. We are working round the close to see that all LGAs in Bauchi State become ODF.”

The RUWASSA boss said that the agency was working hard to ensure that water supply was regular in communities stressing that, “Most of our communities have 70 percent access to safe drinking water, particularly LGAs that were supported by UNICEF to construct hand pump boreholes.”

He also said that, “We are currently working with the African Development Bank (ADP) project to have access to other LGAs that have not had for now- about eight LGAs.”

Also speaking with journalists during the facility tour, Officer-in-Charge, UNICEF Bauchi Field Office, Dr Adams said that he was aware of the public toilet facility in Central Market Azare.

According to him, “This is one of the strategies that UNICEF in supporting the Federal Government of Nigeria. Economically incentivizing sanitation through the approach of toilet business owners, creates jobs and improves income generation while leading us to our goal to become open defecation free.”

He added that, “The facility is a Private Pubic Partnership and you cannot just do it with only one strategy, you have to diversify. Most of such toilets you will see that this is a private person and they are usually well-maintained. PPP is another way to ensure that toilets are available for everybody. We can go the way by doing it on individual basis but this is also another way so we encourage others to learn from it.”

Also, another set of journalists visited a private school which is a symbol of how schools should encourage proper use of the toilet, Ummul Qurra Science Academy where the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) was  urged to support water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) activities in schools in order to promote effective and efficient environment.

The importance of adequate WASH facilities for effective and efficient learning and teaching was also stressed in order to develop sound and healthy leaders of tomorrow.

The assertion was made by the President of Environmental Sanitation Club (ESC) of Ummul Qurra Science Academy, Hadiza Tijjani Ilyas Azare, while fielding questions from journalists as part of the activities to mark the 2023 World Toilet Day.

She also said that availability of WASH facilities in the school will promote healthy learning environment as pupils and students will feel free to concentrate on their studies knowing that any time nature calls, they have a conducive place to answer the call.

The ESC President said that, specifically, the girl child needs a safer environment to enable her relax to study lamenting that lack of WASH facilities in most Schools have retarded the education of the Girl-child.

She added that with availability of WASH facilities in the schools, the students especially the girls will feel free particularly during their monthly flow which normally keep them out of school for the period of time it comes.

Hadiza stressed that, “In our school, here we have 45 toilets demarcated for females and males, we have water flowing regularly and the toilets are well taken care of. We are very comfortable.”

She also said that, “We have a pad bank from where we get pad for any girl who starts flow during the school hours. It is given freely. We also have toiletries to be used by all of us to keep clean.”

Hadiza then commended United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) for the training on WASH issues which led to the formation of the Environmental Sanitation Club (ESC) in the school calling however for more attention.

Also speaking, the President of ESC for the male students said that the activities of the club has really impacted on them, the practice of clean environment.

He also said that he has imbibed the practice of sanitation even at home saying, “I always make sure that I talk to Almajiri boys in my area not to be passing feces anywhere. Open defecation is harmful to our health.”

He too said that the sensitization by UNICEF has really helped them as members of the ESC to practice WASH activities in the school and at home. The ESC President called on UNICEF, RUWASSA and other relevant stakeholders to ensure that schools get support to promote WASH activities for a healthy environment for learning.