The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the state Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) have fingered open defecation as the cause of the outbreak of cholera across Anambra State.
This as the two organisations blamed the last flood for the epidemic.
The UNICEF, Technical Partners, Mr. Mike Onyemelukwe made the assertion on Thursday in Anambra State, during an assessment visit of the areas affected by floods.
Onyemelukwe further commended the world body and the Anambra State Government for their efforts in ameliorating the plight of the affected persons, explaining that it would go a long way in reducing open defecation, which had become rampant in the communities as a result of the flood.
According to him, open defecation and cholera could be prevented if the facilities required were provided.
He said the donor agencies were interested in issues concerning women and children.
The two bodies have commenced assessment of the level of damage ahead of the rehabilitation and replacement of the destroyed social amenities in some parts of Anambra state by last year’s flood.
UNICEF commenced the assessment last week and would start repairing the facilities in public schools, markets, Primary Health Care centres and other public places.
The rehabilitation inspection had taken the officials to Anambra East, Anambra West, Ayamelum, Awka North and Ogbaru Local Government Areas where the flood destroyed most public facilities, while in Ekwusigo and lhiala areas,the UNICEF technical team discovered that many farmlands and some buildings were damaged.
The Programme Manager of the state Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (RUWASSA) Mr Tochukwu Nwosu appealed to the Anambra State government to continue to support UNICEF in its efforts to provide water and sanitation facilities in communities that did not benefit from UNICEF intervention scheme, stating that some communities not affected by the flood also lacked social amenities.”A total of 83 facilities in the seven LGAs were adversely affected by the flood.”
