UNICEF Urges Bauchi Govt. to Initiate Policy For Effective Faecal Sludge Management

 

By Idris Ayinde

The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Bauchi Field Office has called on the state government to initiate a deliberate policy that would ensure the effective management of faecal sludge.

The Chief of Field Office, UNICEF, Bauchi, Dr Tushar Rane made the call in Bauchi on Tuesday during a three-day Strategy Development Workshop on Climate-Resilient Faecal Sludge Management and Operative Guidelines for Bauchi State.

According to him, poor practices around faecal sludge disposal presented a devastating health impact on the people especially, children and women.

He explained that the strategy document that would be developed from the workshop would present approaches for the service delivery and the enabling environment needed to implement and regulate safe Faecal Sludge Management in the state.

The UNICEF boss added that the document would also include technical guidelines, standard operating procedures, monitoring and evaluation framework and the estimated investments needed for Faecal Sludge Management in Bauchi state.

“The outcome of this workshop is envisaged to serve as the operational guidelines for all the service providers and relevant stakeholders within the faecal sludge management value chain.

“UNICEF, with the generous support of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will continue to work closely with the Bauchi State Government and other development partners to encourage safe and environment-friendly faecal sludge management,” he said.

Rane, who acknowledged that Bauchi state is a leading state in the implementation of WASH related interventions in Nigeria, said effective management of faecal sludge would contribute to achieving Sustainable Development Goals related to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene.

Also speaking, the Bauchi state Commissioner for Environment and Housing, Mr Danlami Kaule thanked UNICEF for the technical support provided to the state.

He said that the collection, transport, treatment and end use or reuse of excreta constituted the value chain of fecal sludge management.

“I’m sure you will all agree with me that, that Faecal sludge management has been very poor in most of our states but the story is now changing in Bauchi State,

“BASEPA as a regulating Agency under the Ministry of Environment is doing a good work by formalising all the key actors along the fecal sludge value chain in the State.

“The Agency has come up with a draft guidelines for the faecal sludge management, and organised a series of capacity building workshops to faecal sludge manual and mechanized emptiers across the State.

The workshop was organised by the Bauchi State Environmental Protection Agency in collaboration with the Bauchi State Rural Water Supply & Sanitation Agency with support from UNICEF and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

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