How Improved public toilet facilities boosted ODF attainment in Katagum

From Paul Orude Bauchi

Auwalu Ali is a Toilet Business Owner (TBO) at the popular  Central Market in Azare, Katagum Local Government Area of Bauchi State.

Ali is excited that his improved toilet business has contributed to Katagum being certified Open Defecation Free (ODF).

Katagum  joined Dass, Warji, Shira, Gamawa, Bogoro, Ganjuwa, and Toro LGAs to achieve this milestone.

Ali, TBO Katagum

One thing that strikes a visitor is the hygienic and odorless aura of the public toilet owned by Ali which also has bathing facilities and clearly designated compartments for male and female users.

The facility was visited by a team of journalists in Katagum on Thursday as part of efforts to commemorate the World Toilet Day (WTD) November 19 to bring attention to the importance of safe and hygienic toilets.

This year’s WTD, theme “Accelerating Change” highlights the journey towards achieving “SDG 6- Clean Water and Sanitation” – which  is about seven years away from 2030 – the global target for the Sustainable Development Goal SDGs.

Ali’s facility, called Sawaba, is one of the five public toilets constructed under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) by the Bauchi State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, RUWASSA with support from the United Nations Children’s Fund UNICEF in Katagum

“There is provision of Solar powered boreholes for water supply in the toilet for users,” he said.

Dr Clement Adams

“We operate this facility till 10 pm in the night and even if someone that wants to use the facility does not have money, we allow him to use it for free.This part of our gesture to discourage defecating in the open” he said

Nubu Zaki, Commissioner for Water Resources, said awareness was created for through promotional activities for toilet business owners on the need  to improve latrine uptake

“There is high demand for improved latrine by household, however, inadequate funds from household and TBOs becomes a bottleneck” he said.

Zaki explained  that TBOs were trained and linked to micro-finance institutions where they accessed funds for improved latrine construction.

The arrangement  was carried out under the PPP on revolving basis and for business expansion by the TBOs.

Sabo, Acting GM, RUWASSA

The Commissioner observed  that the issuance of revolving loan to TBOs Fast Tracked improve latrine uptake in the state.

“Construction and usage of improved latrine is a dignity, pride, disease prevention, prevention of water pollution” he said.

Ali said TBOs and communities in Katagum were initially less supportive of the idea.

“At first when the team approached us with the idea of public toilets to address open defecation we didn’t understand it and we initially didn’t welcome the idea,” Ali, trained under the PPP in the Katagum LGA recalled.

“But today we are glad we accepted it because it has transformed our lives”

UNICEF  says 48 million people still defecate in the open – mostly in the rural areas in Nigeria, resulting in severe socio-economic losses for the country.

“We know now that improved toilets can transform lives and after awareness  was created, things have improved,” Ali said.

“Since the construction of the toilet in 2018 and when my business commenced in 2019, people no longer defecate openly around the Central market area in Azare

“It was terrible in the past because when the market closed, people usually came to defecate in the area and the whole place was usually messed up”

The availability of improved toilet in schools, public spaces, homes, and health facilities is critical to discouraging open defecation, UNICEF says.

Ali’s public toilet is opened to the public as early 7 am and closed 10 pm with four staff who ensure that it is kept hygienic on daily basis.

“We usually charge between N50 and N100 depending on the type of service rendered,” he stated

 “I ensure that the toilet is hygienic because of the large number of people coming to the market in the area.

Besides capacity building, Ali said RUWASSA and partners constructed solar borehole in the toilets to ensure steady water supply for the facility.

The major challenge of Ali’s public toilet is that the facility is not friendly to physically challenge.

It was also observed that it had only one entrance through which both male and female use to access the facility.

By the norms and tradition, some female users might be uncomfortable using a single entrance with users.

The Acting General Manager of RUWASSA assured that the challenged  would be addressed.

“Despite the fact that  the toilet was constructed about  five years ago, how you see it today showed that the proprietor had been able to properly manage it,” he said.

“That is why people are still patronizing it and that is something that we oriented them “

He said no fewer than 194 TBOs were trained across the 20 LGAs in the state.

“In additional TBOs were identified and trained under the PPP in 2022.

“Some of them are now in business while others are yet to commence perhaps because of issue of funding”

He assured that user-friendly design of public toilets, particularly for women, girls, and persons with disabilities was being considered.

“From what we saw in the design it is something that will serve all categories of people, that  is  itwill be inclusive,” he said

“After having the new model validated we will pilot it somewhere in the state by RUWASSA or stakeholders that are interested in constructing toilets in their LGAs

“At the onset the PPP arrangement that had not be taken into conservation it was after using the facility that we realized that was need to construct toilets that are all inclusive.

“That’s why we are coming with new designs that will accommodate the needs of all”

He assure that the state government was working round the clock to ensure Bauchi meets the SDG target  in 2030.

“We have almost 10 LGAs  that are ODF.

“We are working round the close to see that all LGAs in Bauchi  State become ODF”

The RUWASSA boss said the agency was working hard to ensure that water supply was regular in communities.

“Most of our communities have 70 percent access to  safe drinking water , particularly LGAs that were supported by UNICEF to construct hand pump boreholes.

“We are currently working with the African Development Bank (ADP) project to have access to other LGAs that have not had for now- about eight LGAs”

Also speaking with journalists during the facility tour, Offixer-in-Charge, U ICED Bauchi Field Office,, Dr Clement Adams said he was ware of the public toilet facility in Central  Market Azare.

“This is one of the strategies that UNICEF in supporting the Federal Government of Nigeria ,” he said.

“Economically incentivizing sanitation through the approach of toilet business owners, creates jobs and improves income generation while leading us to our goal to become open defecation free.

“The facility is a Private Pubic Partnership and you cannot just do it with only one strategy, you have to diversify

“Most of such toilets you will see that this is a private person and they are usually well-maintained.

“PPP is another way to ensure that  toilets are available for everybody. We can go the way by doing it on individual basis but this is also another way so we encourage others to.learn from it”