The Minister of Water Resources, Sarah Reng Ochekpe, has called on Nigerians to pay more attention on personal hygiene, including hand washing with soap and running water, to prevent the spread of Ebola virus and other water-related diseases such as cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery and typhoid fever.
The Minister made the call on Monday when she flagged- off the National Emergency Hand Washing Campaign to prevent the spread of Ebola in Nigeria.
The campaign was organized in three stages in three different locations.
Stage one was at the Federal Ministry of Water Resources premises, while stage two was at Jabi Motor Park and the third stage at Wuse Main Market, all in Abuja.
Speaking during the events, Ochekpe said the promotion of hand washing with soap and running water was part of the mandate of the Federal Ministry of Water Resources at this critical period.
She said as such, it was important to embark on the sensitization campaign on hand washing.
She said: “We are here as part of our mandate to undertake public enlightenment on hand washing to promote personal hygiene and sanitation.
“The campaign would go beyond Abuja.
“We are taking it to the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria.
“We will work with Hon. Commissioners of Water Resources in all the 36 states of the federation through their water supply and sanitation programmes in their various states.
“This is to emphasize the fact that for us to curtail the spread of disease, every Nigerian must partake in the campaign process by way of conducting ourselves right in the way and manner that will promote not just personal hygiene but hygiene of the whole country.
“As we are aware that most of the diseases in the country today are water related diseases, now we invite stakeholders to partner with government in promoting sanitation and hygiene.
“If we do what we are supposed to do, others would copy from us.
“That is why we are starting the campaign here in the ministry with the hope that each one of us would take this assignment very seriously.
“We should make sure that any time we use either the toilets or shake hands, we should be conscious to wash our hands.
“If every Nigerian will imbibe this culture, I believe that the amount of money spent as individuals and also as families in the healthcare centre would reduce drastically.
“It means that there would be more money in our hands to do other things that would promote the wellbeing of the family.”
Ochekpe practically demonstrated the process of hand washing with soap and water and officials of the Jabi Motor Park as well as Wuse Main Market leaders demonstrated the process of hand washing with soap and water.
At the Jabi Motor Park, the Minister pledged to provide them with borehole to reduce their suffering in accessing potable water.
The Chairman Mini bus Long Journey, Jabi Motor Park, Olugbade Olagunju, and the Managing Director of Wuse Market, Alhaji Abubakar Usman Faruk, commended Ochekpe Minister for taking the campaign to their domains.
They promised to extend the hand washing campaign to their families, neighbourhoods and all their loved ones.