The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) Enugu Field Office, in conjunction with Broadcasting Corporation of Abia State (BCA) has stated the importance of the culture of regular hand washing.
The organisation noted that the practice would reduce the incidence of some diseases like diarrhea, respiratory infection and tropical diseases.
The UNICEF WASH specialist, Mrs Rebecca Gabriel, dropped this hint on Tuesday at a one-day press briefing on the Global Hand Washing Day 2024 with a theme: “Why Are Clean Hands Still Important,” held at Hotel Sylvia, Enugu.
The WASH specialist, while stressing on the need to have constant hand washing, said that regular hand washing was capable of reducing diarrhea by 30%, pointing out that hand washing could also reduce acute respiratory infection by 20%.
She further pointed out that tropical diseases such as elephantiasis, which are endemic in many places in Nigeria, could be curbed through regular hand washing.
According to her, 83% of the Nigerian population lack proper hand washing facilities and as a result, many people are suffering from communicable diseases.
As a solution to check the diseases caused by not embarking on regular hand washing, the WASH specialist called on governments to increase budgetary allocation for hygiene as well as provide adequate water for drinking and other purposes.
She lamented that in the South East alone, about 3.6 million households do not have toilet facilities, thereby indulging in open defecation that eventually permeate into water fountains and streams.
Speaking at the occasion, the Acting MD, Enugu State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, EN-RUWASSA, Ms Chika Mbah, represented by Chioma Dick-Emmanuel, TA, WASH EN-RUWASSA, said that the importance of hand washing cannot be over-emphasised because it was through hands that diaseses can pass into people’s bodies.
Mbah said that it is only a healthy people that can be financially productive, adding that, “we are here to motivate everyone to embrace the life saving practice of hand washing. Together we can make a lasting impact on the society,” she said.
a