Liberia: AS WASH Actors Celebrate World Toilet Day
… Donor Partners assure GOL of more support to the sector – By: WASH R&E “Media” Network – As part of World Toilet Day celebration 2017 under the theme: “Waste Water”, the government of Liberia, Donor partners, Civil Society and students gathered in the Capital of Montserrado County, Bentol to commemorate the Day.
Dr. Mosoka Fallah, NPHIL Deputy Director General
The program commenced with a grand parade in the principal streets of Bentol with development partners, Civil Society and Government joining students to demonstrate the importance of the Day.
Providing an overview of World Toilet Day, Amos Gborie of the Ministry of Health said the Day was set aside by the United Nations and other partners to highlight the difficulties billions of people experience due to the lack of toilet facilities.
Chuchu Selma, Deputy Country Director of WaterAid Liberia/Sierra Leone
Mr. Gborie indicated that 4.5 billion people live without a household toilet that safely disposes their waste.
World Toilet Day is about encouraging people to act to tackle the global sanitation crisis.
He disclosed that by 2030, the Sustainable Development Goals, specifically SDG #6, aimed to reach everyone with sanitation, and halve the proportion of untreated wastewater and increase recycling and safe reuse.
Mr. Gborie said sanitation systems of billions of people around the world are either non-existent or ineffective and, consequently progress in health and child survival is seriously undermined.
Coordinator of the Liberia WASH Consortium, Idrissa Kamara
Delivering government special World Toilet Day Message, the Deputy Director General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia, said the issue of safe sanitation is very critical to the growth and health of any nation.
Dr. Mosoka Fallah indicated poor sanitation contributes to childhood illness thus affecting the growth of children.
He said the need to provide improved sanitation is key to maintaining good health amongst the citizens of Liberia.
The Deputy General encouraged students attending the program to practice improved sanitation and also spread the awareness message about World Toilet Day, and why it is important to practice safe sanitation.
He commended WASH sector line Ministries and agencies for robustly implementing the Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) Program.
For his part, the Deputy Country Director of WaterAid Liberia and Sierra Leone, Chuchu Selma called for the collective efforts of all Liberians to meet the Sustainable Development Goal Six on water and sanitation.
Mr. Selma noted that government must not be seen as the only institution that is responsible to ensure that sanitation services are available.
He said in order to achieve this dream, Liberians need to personalize the vision 2030.
Cross section of students attending World Toilet Day Program in Bentol, Montserrado County
Also making remarks, the Coordinator of the Liberia WASH Consortium, Idrissa Kamara thanked the organizers for hosting such an elaborate program to commemorate the Day.
He said the Day brings to the fold issues surrounding sanitation in Liberia in particular and the world in general of what is needed in solving these problems.
Mr. Kamara expressed the commitment of the Consortium in working with the government of Liberia and other partners in the WASH sector.
For their part, UNICEF WASH Specialist, James Massaquoi and Global Communities, Alex Keimbe assured government and citizens that their respective organizations will continue to support efforts on sanitation.
They stressed the need for Liberians to have improved sanitation in order to avoid the spread of sicknesses.
Messrs. Massaquoi and Keimbe noted that poor sanitation has been and is still a major challenge to billions of people globally and as such proper action needs to be taken to address the situation.
World Toilet Day is an official international observance that shines light on the global sanitation crisis.
