Leadership (Abuja)

Nigeria: Country May Not Meet MDG Sanitation Target - Unicef

By Chika Otuchikere, 1 June 2008

Abuja — The United Nations Child Education Fund UNICEF has ruled out Nigeria's chances of meeting the millennium development goal target of 70 per cent population access to sanitation facilities by 2015.

Deputy representative of UNICEF in Nigerian made this observation in an interview in Abuja where he attributed this to the country's large population.

According to Limlim, poor sanitation causes diarrhea and put Nigeria's diarrhea prevalence rate at 18.8 per cent.

He said this had led to high child mortality rate, making it the second killer of children after malaria.

Limlim noted that other diseases linked to high diarrhea prevalence included acute respiratory infection, cholera, polio and others.

"If Nigeria did not meet the target, neither will Africa as a whole meet," he said.

He added that the most important thing to look into was not the targets, but the impact of lack of improvement on sanitation in Nigeria.

The UNICEF deputy representatives said there was an abundant evidence showing the importance of hygienic behaviour in the reduction of sanitation-related sicknesses and deaths.

Limlim said hand washing with soap after defecating and before eating or preparing food was particularly important to reducing diarrhea.

Tagged: Children, Environment, External Relations, International Organisations, Nigeria, West Africa

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  • blfnigeria
    Jul 14 2008, 11:07
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    The Bread of Life Development Foundation is carrying out a study towards the development of the Osun State Water Policy and restructuring of the Osun State Water Corporation (OSWC) and the Osun State Environmental Protection Agency (OSEPA)-both in Nigeria to ensure better service delivery.

    We are also accessing the roles that can be played by the private sector in the water and sanitation sector Osun state and make recommendations based on inputs from sector managers and stakeholders.

    This study is being carried out as part of the European Union funded Water Supply and Sanitation Reform Programme (WSSSRP) which is aimed at increasing access to safe, adequate and sustainable water and sanitation services and in Osun and five other focal states: Anambra, Cross River, Jigawa, Kano, and Yobe through improved water governance and water and sanitation service delivery in urban town areas.

    Against this background, Bread of Life Development Foundation is organizing an electronic conference on “Water Sector reform in Osun State” between Monday July 14 and Friday July 25, 2008.

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    and drop your comments on any of the topics below. Separate pages has been created for the topics below, and all that is required of you is to post your comments under any topic.

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    Bread of Life Dev. Foundation