…As HELWEI marks Green Action Week 2025
The Federal and Lagos State Governments have been urged to allocate and release dedicated budget lines for constructing and maintaining essential WASH facilities in traditional markets.
Executive Director, Healthy Living and Women Empowerment Initiative (HELWEI), Eberechukwu Okey-Onyema made the call while speaking at a one–day media stakeholders meeting which held in Lagos in commemoration of the Green Action Week 2025.
Okey-Onyema also stressed the need for the governments to include gender-sensitive public toilets, functional water points, safe hand washing stations and structured waste disposal systems in markets, adding that market vendors and consumers deserve clean, dignified spaces that support health safety, and economic activity.
According to her, “There should be clear, institutionalised collaboration between relevant Ministries such as Ministry of the Environment, Health, Agriculture, Primary Health Care Board, Ministry of Information and Strategy and Local Government, Community Affairs- and Rural Development to harmonise standards, share data and jointly monitor hygiene compliance across markets.”
She also appealed to government, development partners, NGOs and market unions to invest in continuous community-driven Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) strategies that empower market traders, consumers and environmental workers to understand and adopt hygiene-conscious behaviours delivered in local languages and through culturally relevant platforms.
Emphasising the need for the enforcement of hygiene standards through regulation and accountability systems, she said: “It is not enough to set standards, markets should be regularly inspected and compliance enforced. Environmental health officers and market supervisors should be equipped, trained and supported to carry out regular WASH audits, enforce regulations and shut down high-risk areas until remedial actions are taken. Market access should be conditional on meeting a minimum threshold of hygiene compliance.”
While describing the media as drivers and narrative shapers, HELWEI boss called on the media to become champions for safer markets and healthier communities.
“The media must continue to spotlight poor sanitation, amplify community voices and set agenda for duty-bearers to act. Through investigative reporting, citizen storytelling, radio programming and data journalism, the media has the power to shift public opinion and drive systemic change,” she said.
Quoting the Water, Sanitation, Hygiene National Outcomes Routine Report (WASH NORMS) 2024, she said that access to basic WASH services has remained at a low record of 17 percent in Nigeria.
“Even more alarming is the fact that only 4 percent of public parks and traditional markets, which serve as daily food sources for millions of households, are equipped with basic water and sanitation infrastructure.
“In these same markets, food is prepared, sold, handled—and contaminated directly endanger millions.”
For her, Lagos State faces significant water and sanitation challenges, with a daily demand of 720 million gallons per day (MGD) and a current installed water production capacity of only 210 MGD, resulting in a substantial gap of over 500 MGD.
“Merely 10 percent of the population have access to public water supply, while around 24 percent have access to basic sanitation.
“The consequences of inadequate water and sanitation services are dire, with over 70,000 children under five dying annually from water-borne diseases.
“In 2021, Nigeria recorded a staggering 111,062 cholera cases and 3,604 deaths. Furthermore, water-borne diseases account for 9.77 percent of total deaths in Nigeria, with 144,724 diarrhea-related deaths reported in 2020.
“To address these issues, there are 51 mini and micro waterworks in Lagos State, but more needs to be done to bridge the gap in water supply and sanitation services.”
During the meeting, Okey-Onyema announced that HELWEI was using the opportunity to promote “Kick, Dirt, Hug Life” an initiative that promotes community resilience to environmental protection, nutrition and hygiene in peri-urban communities in Alimosho LGA, Lagos State.
According to her, the programme is being implemented in partnership with the Civil Society Scaling Up Nutrition (CS-SUNN) to mark the 2025 Green Action Week with the theme, ‘Sharing Community.’
Speaking on ‘Promoting Community Resilience to Environment Protection, Nutrition and Hygiene in Peri-Urban Communities in Alimosho Local Government, Lagos State, Modupe Akinyinka, a professor, keynote speaker, stressed the need for proper sanitation in communities so as to prevent diseases and infections particularly among women and children.
Akinyinka, professor of Public Health and Community Medicine, was represented by a Public Health Physician, Aderinsola Anifowose.
She called for continued collaboration between the government, media, NGOs, Ministry of Health, adding that “We need ourselves for improved health system in our local communities.”
Highlight of the event was a panel session which came under the theme, ‘Role of the Media Towards Raising a Collective Action for Enhanced Food Safety in Local Markets in Lagos State and Promotion of Citizens-led Engagement on Sanitation, Hygiene and Nutrition.’
