Sanitation Issues in Nigeria Lead to Open Defecation

Many Nigerians Defecate in the Open Because There are No Good Toilet Facilities or Conveniences within Their Reach, Says the Head of Department of Microbiology

Over 113 million Nigerians defecate in the open because they lack sanitation facilities, according to reports in the national dailies recently.

Dr. Bimbo said in an interview that most of the people who defecate in the open may be carriers of typhoid fever, noting that the disease passes through faeces and when it rains, water washes the waste into vegetables, wells or broken pipes which can cause infectious diseases that are contagious through water and contaminated foods.

"If you go to the market or shopping malls where there are good toilets, people will not defecate outside. A lot of travellers defecate in the open because there are no public toilets on the roads. In some countries, when you are travelling, you will see public toilets by the roads for travellers, even if they have to pay to use them but when we don't have toilets, people will definitely defecate anywhere they see," she said.

Typhoid fever, she said further, is more prevalent in impoverished areas that are overcrowded with poor sanitation.

"When people defecate around, it affects our shallow wells in the neighbourhood and the same contaminated water flows to vegetables and fruits; in the case where they are not properly washed before consumption, the disease is transmitted," Bimbo said.

Also speaking, the Kaduna State Chairman of Nigeria Medical Association, Dr. Mohammed Sani Ibrahim, blamed the act on ignorance, saying a lot of people who defecate in the open, especially in the rural areas, do not know the implication of what they are doing. "Little do they know that rain washes the faeces into their wells and plants and some of them have wells as their only source of water for drinking and other domestic uses," he said.

He also blamed the act on poverty, saying some people desire to have a well built and clean toilet for their household but they cannot afford them, thus they make use of the bush or open field.

"Some people who have toilets in their homes still prefer to defecate in the open because they want fresh air while defecating and they also see it as fun, so much that some people go as far as escorting one another and jisting while defecating.

"Lack of adequate water supply to maintain toilets is another reason why some people defecate in the open. Many toilets are built where there is no constant water supply and because there is no water to frequently wash the toilets, they smell and people run away from using them especially students in boarding schools or hostels. Also, public toilets that are not well kept will be deserted by the people," he said.

Source: AllAfrica

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• Water & Sanitation
• Sanitation & Hygiene