Map of Plateau state is used to demonstrate the report.
By Marie-Therese Nanlong
Jos – Gongpang community, in Riyom local government area of Plateau State is embarking on massive construction of toilets and tippy taps in homes and public places to end open defecation and promote hand washing.
Gongpang community notorious for open defecation has taken the steps to address its poor hygienic conditions.
Leader of the Gongpang community, Pyam Net, said the community is taking steps to achieve “open defecation free status in 2021” noting that residents of the community have witnessed negative impacts of open defecation and poor hygienic conditions for too long.
Speaking when the Centre for Gospel Health and Development, CeGHaD, a health-based organisation and its development partners on the occasion of this year’s Global Hand washing Day drew the attention of people to the dangers associated with poor hygiene, Net noted that proper and frequent hand washing is a first-line defense in preventing outbreaks and reducing the toll of pandemics.
Global hand washing day is celebrated on the 15th of October each year. The theme for this year is “Our Future is at Hand –Lets’ Move Forward Together,”.
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CeGHaD with support from BMZ through CBM Nigeria on the North Central Transitional Aid in Nigeria (NoCTRAiN) project commemorated the event concurrently at Gongpang community in Danto Ward of Riyom LGA of Plateau State and at Tiza community, Awe LGA of Nasarawa state.
The NoCTRAiN project aims to strengthen the resilience of conflict-affected communities and internally displaced communities with attention to disability in Plateau and Nasarawa states.
Addressing the villagers, Executive Director CeGHaD, Nansik Onu outlined the importance of hand washing in reducing spread of disease, explaining her organization has distributed 20 branded hand washing stations to schools and health centres and has also “constructed and rehabilitated 14 accessible VIP latrines with hand washing stations.”
She challenged rural communities to imbibe proper hand washing to reduce the burden of many diseases which pose chronic challenges to health and development.
Earlier, Project Manager NoCTRAiN project, Dasu Yakubu said the project has promoted hand hygiene in the communities as 50 hygiene promoters including six persons with disabilities across 25 communities in Plateau and Nasarawa states were selected and trained to train others.
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He stressed, “Global Hand washing Day provides opportunities for the Government and stakeholders to work together and draw attention to the dangers poor hand hygiene portends to the nation. We are increasing awareness about the importance of hand hygiene and stimulating changes from the policy level to community-driven action.”
The General Manager, Plateau State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, PRUWASSA, Peter Kassam represented at the event by the Director Sanitation and Hygiene, Magdalene Jibrin, maintained, hand washing with soap is critical to the prevention of COVID-19 and Cholera outbreak and helps people improve their health status.
Kassam lamented that “despite its life-saving potential; hand washing with soap at all critical times is seldom practiced and difficult to promote; hence a call for it to be part of ingrained habit or lifestyle.”
