By Inusa Ndahi, Maiduguri
The Borno State government in collaboration with Multi-Sectoral Crisis Recovery Project, MCRP, has organized a five-day training on Water Sanitation and Hygiene Services for critical stakeholders across local government areas and Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, in the state.
The training was also aimed at strengthening over 1,000 community level water sanitation and hygiene committees at village levels to ensure sustainability of public water facilities in their domains for healthy and efficient service delivery.
The event, which took place at Armani Event Hall at Mafoni Liberty, along Muhammad Indimi road in Maiduguri, was declared open by the MCRP State Coordinator, Baba Zanna Abdulkareem, who was represented by the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer Bako Alhaji Shuaibu.
Speaking at the event, Abdulkareem noted with dismay, the high prevalence rate of diseases associated with poor water sanitation as well as poor personal and environmental hygiene in the rural and densely populated slumps in urban areas.
The MCRP State Coordinator also said that statistics have shown that 70 per cent of water facilities fail in their first year of operation due to lack of proper concept of community ownership and sustainability plan, hence, the training to strengthen the capacity of all stakeholders in water and hygiene sectors to enable them entrench the concept and principles of good water and waste management, as well as personal and environmental hygiene across the state, for the safety of all.
On his part, the training consultant, Suleiman Dauda, said that the training has been aligned the overall development objectives of the Borno State government so that the government investments in these sectors will not be a waste.
The training consultant commended governor of Borno State, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, for being proactive in service delivery, adding that the state government has invested so much in these service delivery areas, hence the need for sustainability on the part of the people through community effort and behavioral change patterns.
Presenting his lead paper, one of the facilitators, Abubakar Musa, noted that the training is in two components of building the capacity of participants on water sanitation as well as personal and environmental hygiene promotion to ensure public safety and sustainability of facilities in their domains.
The training, he said, is timely in view of the massive developmental projects executed by Governor Zulum, adding that these projects have targets, impacts, and expected timeline for expansion.
Yagana Grema from Bama, Hussaini Alhaji Muhammad of Damboa, and Halfa Wafenyi Shuwa from Jere local government areas expressed delight for the training, saying that this is the first time they are having an integrated pathway training towards addressing issues of water, sanitation and hygiene in the state.
They also pledged to step down the knowledge and strengthen their various WASH Community Committees for effective, healthy and efficient service delivery.
