Bauchi Commends UNICEF, Others, Over Technical Support For Sanitation

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), WaterAid Nigeria and other donor partners have been commended for the technical support they are providing to Bauchi State, which resulted in the state being listed among the leading states working towards actualising the Safely Managed Sanitation in the country.

The commendation was made by the Commissioner for Housing and Environment,  Danlami  Kawule at a one-day programme on Faecal Sludge Management (FSM) Strategy Implementations in Bauchi, an understudy by Gombe and Plateau States on Wednesday. The event was organised by the Bauchi Field Office of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

He said, “Permit me to welcome you all to this important occasion of exchange Visit on Faecal Sludge Management Implementation in Bauchi State by our two neighboring brothers of Plateau and Gombe States.

“The attainment of this height has not come to us as a surprised, especially looking at the enabling environment and excellent leadership provided by His Excellency, Senator Bala A. Mohammed, the Executive Governor of Bauchi State across all sectors of human endeavor.”

Kawule assured the commitment of Bauchi government to supporting all environmental projects and programmes in the state.

“Faecal Sludge Management, which starts from the storage, collection, transport, treatment, and safe end use or disposal of faecal sludge constitutes the value chain of faecal sludge management.

“I’m sure you will all agree with me that, that faecal sludge management has been very poor in most of our States. But the story is now changing in Bauchi State due to collective efforts of all the stakeholders that are here present. Well done to all of us,” he added.

“BASEPA, as a regulating Agency under the Ministry of Environment, is doing good work by formalizing all the key actors along the faecal sludge value chain in the State,” he said.

He added that, “The Agency has come up with a Guideline for the Faecal Sludge Management, and organizes series of capacity building workshops to different actors in the FSM value chain across the State.”

UNICEF WASH Officer, Nambam Michael commended Bauchi State for being the first state in the country with a validated Fescal Sludge Management (FSM) strategy in the country.

The WASH Officer further commended all the relevant stakeholders in the WASH sector of the state for their resilience in ensuring that the strategy was developed and validated.

Nambam Michael assured that UNICEF would continue to be supportive of strategies that will promote effective faecal sludge management in the States that make up the Bauchi Field Office of the UNICEF.

Also speaking, the general manager of Bauchi State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA), Habibu Mohammed stated that the essence of exchange study cannot be overemphasized in achieving set objectives.

He narrated that few years ago, Bauchi State visited Plateau State RUWASSA to understudy the function of WASH directorate before the state established its own expressing joy that the study has now yielded a positive outcome.

The RUWASSA GM expressed optimism that partnership, collaboration and understudy are key indicators of development and growth in all sectors, assuring that his Agency will always cherish such collaborative efforts.

In his remarks, Bauchi State WaterAid Nigeria Team Lead Mashat Mallo stressed the importance of Faecal Sludge Management (FSM) in promoting WASH activities in society.

He stressed that WaterAid Nigeria is supportive of any initiative that will promote WASH activities pointing out that with adequate WASH focus, the society will be free from health hazards.