The Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) has reiterated its commitment to sustaining Jigawa State’s Open Defecation Free (ODF) status.
ALGON Chairman in the state, Sibu Abdullahi, stated this on Friday in Bauchi at the close of a two-day Post-ODF Assessment Dissemination, Strategy Implementation Progress Review and 2026 Sustainability Plan meeting.
The exercise was organised by the Jigawa State Ministry of Water Resources in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Abdullahi, who also chairs the Dutse Local Government Council, said the 27 LGAs, in partnership with the state government, would scale up investments to maintain the ODF status.
He said senior council officials participated in the review as part of their commitment to sustaining the gains recorded in sanitation and hygiene across the state.
“I believe that, with the level of commitment from UNICEF and the Jigawa State Government, as well as our own commitment as local government councils, we contributed not less than 60 per cent of the financial resources to ensure that the ODF initiative succeeds in the state,” he said.
Abdullahi added that the councils would take full ownership of the initiative and champion ODF campaigns at the grassroots.
“Community members should also take ownership and continue to mobilise to sustain the initiative,” he said.
Also, the Chairman of Birninkudu LGA, Muhammad Uba, said the council had provided more toilets and water sources to improve hygiene, sanitation and public health in the area.
He said provisions had been made for ODF sustainability in the council’s 2026 budget, adding that religious leaders had been engaged to sensitise residents on the dangers of open defecation.
Dr. Stella Okafor-Terve, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Officer at UNICEF’s Kano Field Office, said the exercise aimed to disseminate the post-ODF assessment results, review progress and plan for 2026.
She noted that Jigawa attained ODF status in 2022 and that UNICEF supported the development of post-ODF strategies in 2024.
“Are we really on track? What are the existing gaps? These strategies are targeted at achieving safely managed sanitation and ensuring the sustainability of ODF gains from last year through 2030,” she said.
Okafor-Terve added that safely managed sanitation involves moving households and communities from basic to safely managed sanitation, including faecal sludge management—covering treatment, evacuation, transportation and hygienic disposal.
“It is a whole chain that we are targeting,” she said, adding that more than 90 per cent of ODF sustainability activities lie with the LGAs.
