Cholera: WaterAid launches $2.5m sanitation, hygiene project in Bauchi

Amidst Cholera Outbreak in the country, the United Nations Sanitation and Hygiene Fund (UN- SFH) has provided a grant of $2.5million to WaterAid Nigeria to scale up sanitation and hygiene in Bauvhi state.

The project tagged “Accelerating Inclusive Sanitation and Hygiene Economy in Nigeria” is a 30-month project to be implemented in four local government areas of Bauchi State.

The Country Director of WaterAid Nigeria Evelyn Mere, during the launch of the project in Abuja, stated that the  2021 National Outcome Routine Mapping for WASH, basic access to sanitation in Bauchi State stands at 60 percent, while access to hygiene is just 19percent

She stated that the project is aimed at providing safe water and sanitation infrastructure in communities considered to be cholera hotspots, adding that they also intend to empower women and youth through economic opportunities within the sector.

She added that the project would also promote innovative, sustainable, and inclusive hygiene practices that cater to the unique needs of all individuals, including persons with disabilities, and contribute to breaking the annual cycle of cholera outbreaks in targeted communities.

The project will be implemented in Tafawa-Balewa, Misau, and Jama local government areas of Bauchi State.

To enhance the effective implementation of the project, Mere proposed that the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation serve as an advisory and coordinating capacity, involving an inter-ministerial committee led by the National Task Group on Sanitation at the state level,

She noted that WaterAid will work in partnership with the Bauchi State Government through the Ministry of Water Resources, the Bauchi State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA), the Bauchi State Environmental Protection Agency (BASEPA), community leaders, local government WASH units, civil society organisations, and youth and women’s groups.

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The UN-SFH Country Fund Manager, Ms. Aline Pawele, in her remarks, said according to a study conducted by SFH in 2022, the sanitation economy in Nigeria is estimated at $12 billion by 2030.

She however lamented that Nigeria is far off track in achieving the global target, particularly Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6.2, which has been overlooked and underfunded for far too long.

She said, “Without radical change and a paradigm shift, we will all fail to stress the need to change what we do, how we do it, and with whom we do it. Business as usual is not working and will not deliver the change people need and deserve.”

Pawele said the Sanitation and Hygiene Fund was dedicated to delivering access to sanitation, hygiene, and menstrual health through market-based approaches, adding that they are funded by the governments of the Netherlands and Switzerland.

The Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation  Prof Joseph Utsev while launching the project said the new project will be implemented by WaterAid Nigeria in four local government areas of Bauchi State and is funded by a $2.5 million grant from the Sanitation and Hygiene Fund over a 30-month period.