32 Million Nigerians Defecate Openly, The Practice Costs Nigeria N455b Each Year - World Bank report

The World Bank on Monday said 32 million Nigerians had no means of defecation and as such pass faeces in the open. The report, titled, “Economic impacts of poor sanitation in Africa,” covered Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Republic of Congo, Liberia, Madagascar, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.

“The desk study, Economic Impacts of Poor Sanitation in Africa, found the majority of these costs
to production come from annual premature deaths, including children under the age of five,  due to diarrheal disease. Nearly 90 percent of these deaths are directly attributable to poor water, sanitation, and hygiene.

In the portion on Nigeria, it said, “Poor sanitation costs Nigeria 455 billion Naira each year, equivalent to US$3 billion, according to a desk study carried out by the Water and Sanitation Program (WSP).

“This sum is the equivalent of US$20 per person in Nigeria per year or 1.3% of the national GDP.”

It also said 70 million Nigerians use unsanitary or shared latrines.

Punch