WaterAid Nigeria, an international NGO, says Nigeria is ''off track'' to meet MDG target on water and sanitation.
Mr Timeyin Uwejamomere, the organisation’s Country Representative in Nigeria, said this in an interview on Tuesday in Abuja.
“Unfortunately the sanitation target is a drop down from the 1990 figure which is the baseline and that 1990 figure is 37 per cent. So that’s a concern. We get a lot of activity and a lot of action with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources but we do not see the kind of plan and a kind of implementation approach that can help.
“I think it’s the sense of urgency that we do not see; we do not see a sense of urgency in the process. This has become a national crisis – a situation where two out of every three Nigerian do not have a toilet. It’s a shame and Nigeria is off track to meet the MDG target.”
He said it was worrisome that Nigeria could achieve only 32 per cent sanitation coverage, noting that the country was clearly off target on meeting the Millennium Development Goals for the sector.
He described the absence of potable water and sanitation for Nigerians as a national crisis that should be tackled urgently.
Uwejamomere, who decried the high infant mortality rate in the country, emphasised the need for clean water and good hygienic conditions to control the death rate among children.
“The figure that we have from the United Nations is that 530 children die every day in Nigeria. Children die of diarrhea and if that is considered, as three or four airplanes everyday crashing with our children inside it, we will see a sense of urgency.
“The other time when three or four airplanes crashed within a year, the aviation industry was reformed, but I’m telling you, nobody is paying particular attention to the children that die of diarrhea.
“It’s a shame because these women bury their children in their backyards so it’s not in the national news but that’s the kind of in Nigeria so it’s a crisis situation that needs urgency.”
?The country representative advised government and the private sector to set up a mechanism at the national level for monitoring the progress of water and sanitation projects.
He also called for a national conference and capacity building on the sanitation issues to commit government at all levels to the issues at stake.
“We need to have regular national conferences on water and sanitation, and mechanisms for holding people accountable to these needs.
“Also, conferences that will set out what number of people do we need to train to deliver on this; we need to address this as a matter of urgency.”
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