President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday signed an Executive Order 009 to end open defecation in Nigeria by the year 2025.
The order is entitled, The Open Defecation-Free Nigeria by 2025 and Other Related Matters Order.
By this order, Nigeria is committed to ending open defecation throughout the country by 2025 in consonance with her commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
This is according to a statement signed the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina. He added that the Order signed by President Buhari declares as follows:
a. There is established in the Federal Ministry of Water Resources a National Secretariat called “Clean Nigeria Campaign Secretariat”.
b. The Secretariat is authorized on behalf of the President to implement this Order by ensuring that all public places including schools, hotels, fuel stations, places of worship, market places, hospitals and offices have accessible toilets and latrines within their premises.
All Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government shall cooperate with the Clean Nigeria Campaign Secretariat.
The National Assembly and the State Houses of Assembly shall enact legislation on the practice of open defecation with appropriate sanctions and penalties.
All development projects shall include construction of sanitation facilities as an integral part of the approval and implementation process.
The Secretariat shall terminate when Nigeria is declared Open Defecation Free.
All enforcement authorities are hereby directed to diligently collaborate with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources in implementing this Order.
The statement added that the Executive Order 009 came into being against the background that Nigeria is ranked second among the nations in the world with the highest number of people practicing open defecation estimated at over 46 million people.
President Buhari described the statistics as disturbing and declared commitment to implement the National Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Action Plan.
The President also declared a State of Emergency on Nigeria’s water supply, sanitation and hygiene sector.
The Executive Order takes effect from Wednesday, November 20, 2019.
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