Federal Ministry of Water Resources has disclosed that Nigeria has the highest number of persons, who practice open defecation with an estimate of over 46 million.
Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Hussein Adamu, disclosed this during the official celebration of local government wide open defecation free status by Dass Local Government Area under the Sanitation, Hygiene and Water in Nigeria, SHAWN, project held at Waziri Mazadu Primary School at Dass Local Government headquarters, Bauchi State.
The minister, who was represented by Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Musa Ibrahim, said more than two third of the Nigeria population were without access to basic sanitation facilities, adding that efforts in time past to address the challenge yielded minimal results.
He commended UNICEF and the UK for supporting the implementation of the SHAWN project in Nigeria, which he noted, had been implemented in 70 local government areas of the six states of Bauchi, Benue, Katsina, Zamfara, Kaduna and Jigawa, adding that the project had been extended to 100 LGAs in eight states.