The Oyo State Government says it has concluded plans with the United Nations Children Education Fund, UNICEF, to adopt more Local Government Areas in the state for the Open Defecation Free, ODF, programme.
The Director of Sanitation, Oyo State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency, RUWASSA, Mrs Titilayo Obayemi, revealed this in an interview with newsmen on Tuesday in Ibadan.
According to her, Ibarapa-East Local Government Area in the state had been selected as the third local government that would be triggered for the ODF programme, describing the selection process as competitive and transparent.
Obayemi explained that monitoring and other follow-up programmes would continue at Egbeda and Ona Ara council areas that were initially triggered for the ODF programme.
She recalled that the state government in 2022 launched a roadmap on open defecation to avert its negative impact on the health and wellness of the general citizens.
She noted that the roadmap would enable the state to plan on how the 33 LGAs in the state would be open defecation-free by 2028.
Obayemi, however, described as worrisome the practice of open defecation in the state, noting that the government was doing everything possible to meet its target of open defecation free society by 2028.
“The state government started the ODF project in Egbeda and Ona Ara LGAs as pilots to end open defecation.
“We started with mobilization of the stakeholders with the help of UNICEF and we have been able to trigger some of the communities within the LGAs,” she said.
