Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi
An estimated 300 communities in Tafawa Balewa Local Government Council of Bauchi State are suffering from non-availability of safe drinking water.
This development has endangered the lives of the inhabitants of the local government areas.
THISDAY checks revealed that 100 villages in the council have so far benefited from a rehabilitation of broken down boreholes, courtesy of the intervention of the African Development Bank (ADB) project.
The council has cried out calling for urgent intervention to save the communities considering that recently, there was reported outbreak of Lassa fever in the area.
This was disclosed at a stakeholders’ forum that was held at Bununu, headquarters of Tafawa Balewa LGA, which was organised by an NGO known as Women Development Association for Self-Sustainance (WODASS) in partnership with WaterAid Nigeria.
The council’s WASH Coordinator, Mr. Garba Yau Jambil, said that of the 775 Villages in the local government, 300 still source water from wells and streams that are unsafe for human consumption, considering the threat of communicable diseases which could pose danger to Human lives.
He commended AfDB for its efforts in giving succour to the plight of 100 communities in 2022 even as the WASH Coordinator thanked WaterAid Nigeria for its current Hygiene Behavior Change (HBC), adding that the exercise is aimed at encouraging best hygiene practices in Tafawa Balewa LGA.
He noted that the initiative would help the council to attain open defecation free status.
In his remarks, the representative of the traditional leaders in the area, Mr. Ibrahim Unar, said that the HBC awareness campaign has impacted positively as community members have now realised the danger posed to human health by open defecation.
He said that various families have embarked on construction of toilets within their households to discourage open defecation. Umar warned that any household head that failed to abide by the directive to construct toilets would be sanctioned.
He pointed out that already, some traditional leaders in Tafawa Balewa LGA are now on suspension for failure to enforce the directive within their area of jurisdiction.
Also speaking, the Programme Manager of WODASS, Mr Ezekiel N. Sukumun, appealed to community members in Tafawa Balewa LGA to cultivate the idea of presenting community needs of the people instead of their personal requests arguing that this remained the best option for them to attract genuine assistance from elected representatives.
