The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), in collaboration with the Yobe Government, concluded a validation workshop on Open Defecation Free (ODF) on Monday, aiming at eradicating this menace by 2030.
Mrs. Mamita Thakkar, WASH Manager at the UNICEF Maiduguri Field Office, described the validation as a significant milestone in Yobe’s sanitation advancement.
She noted that this initiative would help guide investments and planning to achieve ODF across the 17 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the state.
“This validation of the ODF roadmap signifies a crucial step in Yobe’s endeavor to attain open defecation-free status.
“The initiative commenced with Machina being recognized as the first ODF LGA, followed by Bade and Fune in 2025,” Thakkar remarked.
She further stated that the roadmap would delineate key milestones, targets, and strategic actions that the state must implement from now until 2030 to guarantee comprehensive sanitation coverage.
Also speaking, Dr. Bilkisu Dossah, a sanitation expert involved in create the plan, shared that the project started in January through a series of consultative engagements with relevant stakeholders.
“We worked together with people from many sectors like education, health, religious groups, motor parks, markets, the Ministry of Women Affairs, and the Local Government Service Commission, and we got both technical and financial support from UNICEF,” she said.
Dossah encouraged the general public to focus on sanitation by using the toilets available, stressing that human waste in open spaces leads to serious diseases like cholera.
“Just having a toilet isn’t enough — it needs to be used. Even if you have a toilet and your neighbor goes outside, you can still get sick.
Nigeria has the highest rate of open defecation in the world. Although Yobe has made progress, there is still a lot to do,” she added.
During his speech, Mr. Abubakar Baba, the General Manager of the Yobe State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASA), pointed out that the goal of the plan is to help the state meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
“Open defecation causes 70 percent of diseases related to sanitation. By tackling this menace, we can greatly reduce many of our public health problems,” Baba mentioned.
He added that the plan aims to promote complete sanitation, which includes not just providing toilets but also setting up hygiene facilities in schools, health centers, markets, and public places with help from private companies.
“The plan outlines how to achieve Open Defecation Free (ODF) status across the state by working together with the Ministries of Health, Environment, Education, Local Government, and the private sector. It’s important for everyone to get involved,” Baba said.
He commended UNICEF for funding the validation workshop, saying the support would enable Yobe to develop a comprehensive document that would guide the implementation of sanitation programmes across the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the roadmap aligns with the Federal Government’s National Action Plan to eliminate open defecation by 2025 and achieve full sanitation coverage by 2030.
(NAN)