By Fatima Saka
The Minister of Water Resources, Engr. Suleiman Adamu, has applauded the Nigerian Government and other stakeholders in the WASH sector for their commitments to increased access to water and sanitation across the country.
The Minister made the applaud at the Sector Ministers Meeting (SMM) organized by Sanitation and Water for All (SWA), on Wednesday in Jakarta, the Indonesian capital.
With the theme ‘Building Forward Better for Recovery and Resilience’, the meeting was focused on the integration of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) approaches in addressing the negative impacts of climate, COVID-19 and economic crises.
Engr. Adamu stated that the commitments made by the four constituencies towards Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) in Nigeria, in the sector of Government, the Civil Society, the Private Sector and the Development Partners, as well as the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) at the global level under the Mutual Accountability Mechanism (MAM) process, are the commitments which were tabled in 2019 during the SMM held in Costa Rica, which were aligned to National priorities for the WASH sector in Nigeria.
He added that the commitments which were tabled in 2019 during the SMM held in Costa Rica, were aligned to National priorities for the WASH sector in Nigeria.
Speaking on, the minister revealed that the three commitments made by the government include: the Internalization of the National WASH Action Plan by Sub-national Governments and operationalization of PEWASH Programme by end of 2019; the Operationalization of the Communication Strategy for Open Defecation Free Campaign by 2020; as well as the scale up of WASH Information Management System and the execution of WASHNORM Annual Survey respectively.
He further stated that the commitments by the Civil Society, Private Sector and Development Partners are targeted at supporting the actualization of government commitments with specific support to the Ministry and focal States.
In another session on the role of political leadership in addressing the triple crises of health, climate and economy, the Minister highlighted evidence-based advocacy, inter sectoral coordination and collaboration, as some of the strategies engaged by Nigeria to ensure the high level prioritization of WASH in the country.
He also mentioned that some of the initiatives in the sector such as the PEWASH programme, the Presidential launch of the National WASH Action Plan, the Clean Nigeria Campaign, and the signing of the Executive Order No.9 and ODF Pledge Card by the President, among others are expected to focus on the SMM to strengthen the existing Inter-sectoral collaboration among the line ministries towards achieving the SDGs at country and global levels.
The focus of the SMM is expected to strengthen the existing Inter-sectoral collaboration among the line ministries towards achieving the SDGs at country and global levels.
The minister attended the meeting alongside his colleagues, the Minister of State for Environment, Mrs Sharon Ikeazor and the Honourable Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire in Jakarta, Indonesia.
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