Kwara State Government has reiterated the its commitment towards reorienting average citizens, against open defecation in the State.
General Manager, Kwara State Rural Water Sanitation Agency (RUWASA), Mr Olorunfemi Oladipo dropped this hint, during a visit to Wara, the Headquarters of Ilorin West Local Government, in continuation of the statewide engagements with key stakeholders, to stamp out open defecation in the state.
Mr Oladipo said a combination of both Local and State monitoring teams would be constituted, with a mandate to ensure that every household in the state has at least one toilet to discourage open defecation.
He stated that the agency believes a lot can be achieved through Local Government authorities, closer to the grassroots.
The General Manager therefore promised to sustain the engagements with the local councils, until the agency accomplish its mission.
According to him, three out of six pilot local governments in Ilorin South, Oke-Ero, and Ilorin West have now been engaged, while the remaining; Patigi, Ekiti, and Ifelodun will be covered soon.
Mr Oladipo, reaffirmed government’s commitment to improving people’s access to potable water and sanitation and called on key stakeholders to join hands with this administration to achieve an open defecation free status.
In his remark, the Executive Chairman, Ilorin West Local Government Council, Alhaji Abdulrahman Babatunde Ladan, applauded State government’s various visionary programmes and initiatives.
Alhaji Ladan affirmed the Council had already keyed into the programme by accommodating it in its 2025 budget appropriation, to provide toilets in schools, markets, and public places, alongside boreholes for several communities.
Head of Sanitation and Hygiene department of the Agency, Mr Abdulazeez Rufai, reminded them of the popular saying cleanliness is next to Godliness and appealed to them to always be hygienic in all they do, for their safety.
He assured them that the agency is working round the clock to ensure government’s target to rid the six pilot Local Government of open defecation by May this year.
