The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, UNICEF says 94 per cent Nigerians do not practice proper hand washing in the country.
A UNICEF representative Oumar Doumbouya said this in Abuja at the 2019 Global Hand washing Day Celebration with the theme: “Clean Hands for All’’ .
He said that the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, WASH sector in Nigeria was facing an interesting time with the recent declaration of state of emergency in the sector, the target to end open defecation by 2025 and government commitment’s to revitalise the sector. He also noted that more than 100 thousand children under five die each year due to diarrhea, of which 90 per cent were directly attributed to unsafe water and sanitation.
Doumbouya said that Nigeria has a national strategy for the promotion of hygiene, which prioritises hand washing before eating, after using the toilet, and after cleaning a child who defecated.The National Coordinator, Water, Supply, Sanitation Collaborative Council Elizabeth Jeiyol, said the global hand washing day was critical to collective aspirations for a healthier society and to set the target for SDGs
