By Asmau Ahamd
Nigeria has begun the process for the development of a National Hand Hygiene Roadmap for All to promote behavioural change.
The development of the national roadmap is part of the efforts to respond to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, spearheaded by the WHO, UNICEF and Federal Ministry of Water Resources.
At the monthly meeting of the National Task Group on Sanitation in Abuja on Wednesday, chairman of the group, Mr Emmanuel Awe, noted that the project aimed to help achieve the global target of hand hygiene for everyone by 2025.
He noted that stakeholders had commissioned a consultant to develop the roadmap with emphasis on effective information gathering to reflect current practices and what to be done to promote sustainable hygiene practices.
While commending UNICEF for beginning a market assessment on hand hygiene, Awe called for adequate reflection of specific needs of all sectors of the society.
UNICEF Water Sanitation and Hygiene Specialist, Mr Bioye Ogunjobi, noted that the roadmap was a revised one which had reflected inputs from the state rural water sanitation agencies and other stakeholders.
Ogunjobi informed the meeting that UNICEF was commissioning a study on Market Assessment of Hygiene Products and Services which would also help in getting information from states to develop the roadmap.
This, he said would look at issues surrounding demand and supply of hygiene products and role of tiers of government. On efforts to scale up sanitation and hygiene, the WASH Specialist said partnership with LIXIL on SaTo Pan donations was ongoing in two wards of Kwali Local Government Area in the FCT.
A SaTo Pan is simple technology that can easily be implemented in any pit latrine to combat the transmission of communicable diseases.
He hinted that this collaboration would trigger community-led total sanitation, saying discussions had commenced with the FCT Rural Water Agency and the Clean Nigeria Secretariat.
Mr Timeyin Uwejamomere, Consultant to developing the National Hand Hygiene Roadmap for All, said that the project was to achieve the global target of hand hygiene through availability of affordable products and services.
He highlighted the objectives of the project to enhance the enabling environment for hygiene, provide recommendations on effective coordination in national, states, LGAs, communities, households, among others.
He said: “The national roadmap will help to develop communities of practice which will bring together diverse stakeholders to discuss innovations and best practices.”
