WaterAid Nigeria, with the support of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has unveiled plans to provide Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) facilities in three communities and one school in the Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The third phase of the project, which will run for 12 months, is expected to provide WASH services to about 6,000 people in the selected communities and 450 school pupils.

Speaking at the phase three design workshop and community selection meeting in Abuja, the Sanitation and Hygiene Coordinator at WaterAid Nigeria, Mr Obinna Ogbodo, said the project targets communities with little or no access to clean water and sanitation facilities.

According to him, the initiative aims to expand WASH access through the construction and rehabilitation of water facilities as well as the provision of public sanitation infrastructure in the target communities.

Ogbodo stressed that access to water and sanitation must be complemented with proper hygiene practices to prevent the spread of waterborne diseases.

“We cannot build water and toilet facilities without promoting good hygiene practices; otherwise, diseases will continue to spread. Many waterborne diseases occur because people do not wash their hands after using the toilet or before eating,” he said.

He explained that the project would also strengthen hygiene behaviour change campaigns already implemented in the previous phases.

According to him, beyond infrastructure development, the project will focus on training community-based WASH management structures to ensure sustainable operation and maintenance of the facilities.

“These structures will be trained on operational maintenance, troubleshooting and hygiene promotion activities so that the facilities can be effectively managed even after the project cycle,” he said.

Ogbodo added that the programme would also strengthen the community water supply chain through the introduction of water safety plans, including the use of locally produced hydrogen sulphide testing vials to assess water quality.

The representative of the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA), Mr Matthew Abu stated that the agency has been part of the first and second phase implementation of the project and has been contributing immensely to the success of the project.

He noted that, as their name implies, they contribute to the provision of water in critical need areas in the area councils, adding that they are always willing to support development  partners that aid their work by providing technical support s

He said  “For instance, we have our team of experts like the geologists who are involved in making sure that they carry out what they call geophysical surveys., we also have experts who decide who go around within the communities to ensure that this water is situated, this facility situated in area that will not have any problems or maybe near the toilets that maybe at the end of the day water will be contaminated and not be safe for the community.”

The Seriki Adini of Buhari Area Council and also the WASH Ambassador HRH Sheikh Baba Yusuf harped on the need for WaterAid Nigeria to further sensitize their residents of the area council so that the WASH infrastructures provided is well utilized and not seen as a national cake.

He also harped on the need for sustainability and ensured that the community leaders are well carried along in the implementation of the project