Environment
Group, UNICEF To Introduce Water, Sanitation Clubs In Schools
The Youth Water Sanita
tion and Hygiene (YOUTHWASH), in partnership with the UN Children’s Fund is set to introduce school sanitation clubs to encourage young people promote hygienic practices.
The group coordinator, Mr Nature Obiakor, told news- men in Abuja that this ` would also help in educating them on healthy living.
He said there was the need to build the capacity of young persons, adding “they are the future leaders, capable of making desired change.”
According to him, schools are important points of learning behavioural practices capable of being replicated at homes among parents and guardians.
“When children learn about the importance of water, hygiene and sanitation, they make informed decisions; they could tell their parents, guardians, and friends on the dangers of not practicing hygienic behaviour.
“We are partnering with UNICEF and WaterAid Nigeria to make this a reality, we are commencing in FCT schools, with time, we will replicate it in other parts of the country.”
He said the project was in line with the implementation of the African Ministers Council on Water Policy and strategy for youth mainstreaming in water and sanitation project.
Obiakor said that water and jobs were related, as it could be an avenue for entrepreneurial development, saying “when water was available, young people could get job opportunities.
“We believe that water and sanitation is a cross cutting issue, we need water for agriculture, we need water for building purposes, we need water when you want to live healthy.
“While we talk about Water and jobs, there are so many other aspects of water that provides or creates jobs.
“In Abuja here, you find out that there are a lot of boreholes, the borehole drills are being fabricated by people.
“The fabrication of the borehole drilling machine is an opportunity for young persons,” he said.
He said Nigeria could not talk about water without talking about sanitation, adding that the group was exploring job opportunities in recycling waste management and energy for the youths.
The coordinator stressed the need for Nigerians to pay for water consumed; stating that although water was free, the processes for purifying water was not free.
He urged Nigerians to demand for water from its leaders, as it was a human right.
“My advice is that Nigerians must understand that we must pay for water, because a lot of Nigerians out there believe that water is free, it is just a free gift of nature and you are not supposed to pay for it.
“The raw water might be free, but the process of purifying that water is not free, people must understand that they must pay for the use.
“People should also realise that WASH is a basic human right, and they should start demanding from government, from politicians to ensure that these rights are gotten,” Obiakor.
President, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Mrs Margaret Oguntala, has inaugurated the construction of 18 units residential terrace in highbrow Alausa area of Lagos toward bridging the nation’s shelter gap.
Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation has launched the 1GOV Enterprise Content Management System (ECMS) to enhance digital governance and improve service delivery.
The launch, held on Thursday in Abuja, marks the ministry’s transition from paper-based operations to a smart, integrated and technology-driven work environment.
The Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Prof. Joseph Utsev, said the deployment aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
Utsev said the system would improve data management, streamline workflows and strengthen transparency and accountability across the ministry.
According to him, the ECMS will enhance productivity, preserve institutional memory and reduce operational costs in the ministry.
Launching the platform, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, said the initiative is a major step in public sector reform.
She said the ministry’s mandate affects Nigerians through water supply, sanitation, irrigation, river basin development and climate resilience programmes.
Walson-Jack said the 1GOV ECMS enables secure digital records management, automated workflows, electronic approvals and real-time collaboration across MDAs.
She added that the deployment aligns with the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025 and the directive for full digitalisation by December 2025.
“Effective governance cannot afford delays caused by manual bottlenecks or avoidable inefficiencies,” she said.
She directed that all official correspondence in the ministry must henceforth be processed through approved digital registry channels.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Dr Emanso Umobong, said the system would eliminate workflow inefficiencies and improve service delivery.
She urged staff to fully adopt the platform and engage in continuous capacity building.
Research shows that local communities and citizens living at the grassroots, particularly women, are directly impacted by the environmental degradation, flooding and others that result from these manifestations.
In the light of this, non-governmental organisation, Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development (EUFORDe), has held a forum for women and other members of oil impacted communities, tagged: ‘Voices from the Grassroots,’ and aimed at building their resilience and mitigation efforts against climate change and environmental degradation
The forum, with the theme: ‘Building Resilience for Oil Spill Impacted Ahoada Communities,’ organised with support from Global Green Grants, was held in Ahoada Community, Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State, on December 5, 2025.
Executive Director of Ese Usamali Foundation For Rural Development, Mercy Elemchukwu-James, said women are at the forefront of efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change and environmental degradation.
The event, therefore, was “designed for community women impacted by oil spills, flooding and other environmental degradation,” she said.
Community women were enlightened by resource persons on new opportunities for sustainable agricultural practices and water management techniques that cushion the impact of oil spills.
Lectures were also delivered on Self-care and Trauma-care, with focus on physical and mental health of the population, and increasing access to health-related resources and services; as well as on Food security and women’s critical role in decision making in oil spill and flood situations in communities
Elemchukwu-James pointed out that the event created a forum for stakeholders, civil society actors and others to dialogue on measures at advancing inclusive and sustainable livelihoods of community women.
She stressed the need for collaborative efforts towards achieving mitigation efforts, while underscoring EUFORDe’s commitment to “fostering partnerships as a critical driver for achieving a healthy community and sustainable development.”
Elemchukwu-James described participants’ design of ‘Community Resilience Plan,’ to manage and combat environmental degradation and crises, as part of achievements recorded at the event.
The forum also witnessed the launching of EUFORDs’ Center For Resilience and Rights.
“This center is established to build resilience as Trauma-Care for victims of environmental degradation, support for survivors of Gender Based Violence (GBV) and a platform where victims of environmental injustice and other GBV cases can seek redress,” Elemchukwu-James said.
Participants celebrated the milestones achieved and charted a path toward greater impact in the coming years. They also described the event as “an inspiring and transformative experience.”
Elemchukwu-James said the awareness creation workshop “reaffirms EUFORDe’s mission to create an equitable society in which the rights and capacities of women, youth, children and underprivileged are integrated in the socio-economic planning and development of communities, for the attainment of equity and peace.