The Lagos State Government as part of efforts to eradicate open defecation and urination in the State, on Thursday, engaged public toilet operators to continually promote healthy sanitation practices in public toilet management in Lagos.
Speaking during the second edition of the training workshop for Public Toilet operators held at the Lagos State Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Nurudeen Olowopopo Drive, Ikeja, the Permanent Secretary, Office of Environmental Services, Dr. Omobolaji Gaji reiterated that the State Government is determined to eradicate the menace of open defecation in the state by 2025.
He said part of the objectives of the one-day training is to build capacity for Toilet Operators as well as to ensure a cleaner, more hygienic and safer public toilet environment in the State.
Gaji, who spoke through the Director, Sanitation Services, Dr. Hassan Sanuth, said the State Government has four cardinal points of operation which include Advocacy; Regularisation & Standardisation; Bridging the gap; Monitoring, Evaluation and Enforcement, saying that the training workshop comes under Regularisation and Standardisation.
The Permanent Secretary said the training provides an opportunity for stakeholders to dialogue on necessary requirements for operators in the sector, adding that the government, in collaboration with other organisations, remains determined to achieve the goal of stopping open defecation and urination in the State.
Gaji said in order to become successful in rendering good services, public toilet operators must be properly trained. He recalled that the government inaugurated an Anti-Open Defecation Squad some years back in line with the environmental laws of the State and as such toilet operators must adhere to proper toilet management to avoid any form of sanctions from the government.
He, therefore, charged all toilet operators in the state to always ensure proper handling of the public toilets as this would help reduce government and individual expenditure on the treatment of diseases and thereby make more money available for other economic uses.
In his lecture titled: “Public Toilet Provision Management, A Panacea to Healthy Living”, the facilitator, Sanitarian (Dr.) Cyril Babasope described Public Toilet as a convenient facility that plays an essential role in both human and environmental health.
He said the vision of the Lagos State Government to ensure the construction of conducive public toilets in the State was laudable bearing in mind that 116 million out of the 250 million population of Nigeria do not have access to decent toilets.
Babasope enjoined public toilet operators to collaborate with the government in order to curb the menace of open defecation in Lagos State.
