Access to safe water and toilets are human rights denied to billions of people. This violation leads to growing inequalities. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that roughly half of child undernutrition is caused by poor water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).  Around the world, poor water, sanitation and hygiene makes children sick, putting mothers and babies at risk in hospitals, and stopping young women staying safe and well during their menstrual cycle.. Children spend long hours in school, and the physical environment and cleanliness of educational facilities significantly determine their health and well-being. Too often, schools are places where children get infected.

Research shows that more than 40 per cent of diarrhoea cases in school children result from transmission in schools rather than homes. Diseases spread faster where many children gather for many hours a day in cramped spaces with limited ventilation, unsanitary conditions, no handwashing facilities or soap, and toilets in poor condition. Research also shows that over one million people around the world die each year from diseases caused by a lack of safe water and sanitation, with most of these deaths recorded in developing countries. Poor sanitation and unsafe water cause nearly 20% of workplace deaths and costs around $260 billion in lost productivity every year. This should not be normal as good water, sanitation and hygiene can reduce sickness by as much as 45%. Handwashing with soap alone can prevent between 500,000 and 1.4 million deaths per year.

As part of its mission and objectives, Community Excellence and Development Initiative (CEDI) is working to promote good water, sanitation, and hygiene in vulnerable communities. CEDI is borne out of the need to empower lives and build sustainable communities by promoting sustainable development projects in health, education, agriculture, clean energy and the environment in Nigerian schools/communities.

CEDI embarked on this workshop to inculcate good hygiene behaviours in students and teachers and ensure that they are able to teach their families and friends what they have learnt to help change attitudes and establish good hygiene for generation to come.

Objectives of the Workshop

Objectives of the workshop include to:

• To raise awareness about the need for good water, sanitation and hygiene
• To interact with students and understand the challenges they face in practicing good hygiene, as well as having good water and sanitation.
• To open up opportunities for further engagements with the schools.
• To help generate ideas for scalability in other schools and communities.

The workshop had in attendance over 200 participants. It supports the efforts of key stakeholders especially the international community to scale up access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in schools as it holds potential for impact towards all Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) especially SDG 3 and 6 (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages as well as ensure the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all).

Welcome Remarks

The Executive Director, Community Excellence and Development Initiative (CEDI), Mr. Israel Ozovehe O. in his welcome address acknowledged the efforts of various partners and stakeholders in promoting WASH activities in schools. He appreciated the school authorities and students who made out time to be sensitized on WASH. He stated that CEDI is promoting WASH in schools because schools have an important role in protecting children and their families from disease and illness due to poor water, sanitation and hygiene. More so, according to World Health Organisation (WHO), 88% of diarrhea disease is attributed to unsafe water supply, inadequate sanitation and hygiene. Hygiene interventions including hygiene education and promotion of hand washing can lead to a reduction of diarrhea cases by up to 45%. The provision of safe water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in educational institutions is a key intervention to promote student’s right to health and clean environment. He urged all teachers and students to practice good hygiene behaviours and teach their families and friends what they have learnt as this will help change attitudes and establish good hygiene for generation to come.

The Principal, Junior Secondary School, Aleyita, Mrs Abdullahi Toyin O. in her remark appreciated CEDI for recognizing the need for WASH in her school and for taking out time to positively affect the lives of the students and teachers of her school. She told the students to listen attentively to the lecture on WASH and imbibe the culture of handwashing as “dirt causes death”. She ended her remark by wishing CEDI the greatest height in her interventions and urged CEDI to provide hand washing stations for her school.

Lecture on WASH

The Chief Executive of ZAFTA-MED Clinic and Maternity, Matron, Nurse Mid-wife, Salako Medinat in sensitizing the teachers and students reiterated the need for a clean environment and advised them to practice good hygienic behaviour so as to reduce the risk of diarrhea, cholera, Hepatitis E and other hygiene-related diseases.

In her lecture, she educated the teachers and students on the need to develop proper hygiene and how it affects their lives presently and in the future. She noted the need to imbibe the culture of handwashing as it will help in preventing many ailments. She cited germs as the main causes of different kinds of illnesses and stating that these can be prevented by proper sanitation and hygiene.

She engaged the students in an interactive section. Students asked questions like “how do you know you have infection; how many times should we wash our hands in a day” etc. She responded professionally to all the questions and the students and teachers were excited.

Closing Remark/Vote of Thanks

The Director, Gender and Social Development at CEDI, Bar. (Mrs.) Gatta Tokunbo in her closing remark appreciated all participants for their attention and fruitful articipation and urged them to keep spreading the gospel of WASH to everyone they come in contact with. She advised the students to take on the character of cleanliness and re-emphasized that CEDI will continue to support and partner with other stakeholders to actualize the WASH goal.

Annexes

Annex 1: Attendance List

Sensitization on WASH at Junior Secondary School, Aleyita

off Airport Road, Abuja

Friday, October 26, 2018

Annex 2: Workshop Agenda

Sensitization on WASH at Junior Secondary School, Aleyita

off Airport Road, Abuja

Friday, October 26, 2018

AGENDA                                                                     

Arrival/Registration of Participants

Welcome Address –          Onuvae Israel, Executive Director, CEDI

Remark –                           The Principal, Junior Secondary School, Aleyita

Lecture on WASH  –       Matron, Nurse Mid-wife,  Salako Medinat, Chief Executive, ZAFTA-MED Clinic and Maternity, Abuja

Closing remark/

Vote of Thanks  –            Bar. (Mrs.) Gatta Tokunbo, Director, CEDI

Annex 3: Photo clips from the Workshop