Nigeria is endowed with human and natural resources compared to other developing countries, which is the major reason the country was christened the giant of Africa. However, the inability of governments to harness the potentials for the benefits of citizens and grow the local economy have been taunted with myriad of problems. This is further reflected in poor handling of human and environmental health given the outbreak of communicable, water and airborne diseases as well as other infectious diseases. Findings by LEADERSHIP revealed that Nigeria is currently battling to contain the outbreak of cholera that ravaged 18 states of Adamawa, Anambra, Bauchi, Borno, Ebonyi, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Niger, Plateau, Yobe, Sokoto and Zamfara likewise the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by ingestion of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholera. A situation report by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) revealed that about 517 died from cholera outbreak while 27, 927 cases were recorded between January and September 2018. This is not unconnected with the shortfall in sanitation and poor enforcement of environmental laws as 10, 000 registered environmental health officers (EHOs) is inadequate to monitor the environmental health of over 200, 000 million population.
Irrespective of the lapses, prioritising environmental health services is one area that federal government could rake in Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) for the country and guarantee massive jobs in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s ERGP. The ERGP, a medium term plan for 2017 – 2020 is aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) given that it captured three dimensions of economic, social and environmental sustainability issues. The services in environmental health ranges from sanitary inspection and audit, municipal/solid waste management, pest and vector control services as well as professional certification and recertification. Experts have asserted that Environmental Health Services (EHS) could bolster implementation of the ERGP in Nigeria through waste collection, transportation, and management strategies such as waste recycling while creating jobs for unemployed Nigerians. The pioneer professor of Environmental Health Science, Federal University of Technology Owerri, Dr Agu Nkwa Amadi, pointed out that Nigeria could generate over $3.2 trillion annually from environmental health services, thereby creating over one hundred and fifty six thousand jobs nationwide. He lamented that quacks who failed to pay taxes have hijacked public health pest and vector control services, stressing that most of the companies rendering such services were not registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) or relevant bodies.
Amadi, who is also the president of Academy of Environmental Health Scientists of Nigeria (AEHSN) hinted that effective environmental health care services was the cornerstone of all national healthcare services.
He appealed to the federal government to prioritise the practice of environmental health in Nigeria, adding that environmental health should be strengthened to support the regulatory body. Amadi harped on the need for the ministry of environment to redeploy senior EHPs to the ministry in order to assist in formulation of policies on environmental health practice, even as he enjoined environmental health practitioners to adhere to the code of ethics guiding the profession. The don advocated the repositioning of environmental health practice through certification and recertification of practitioners in modern techniques in environmental health practice. He suggested that if business owners could incorporate waste management policies into an environmental management system that their businesses would benefit by reducing environmental liability, boosting its image and raising staff morale. Amadi stated that by implementing ‘the Polluter Pays Principle’, that social and environmental costs of polluting the environment would be paid by polluters, thereby generating revenue for the government.
Responding to disasters or emergencies and assisting communities in recovery from disasters likewise assuring the quality and access to environmental health services forms the crux of environmental health.
The registrar/CEO of EHORECON, Dr Dominic Abonyi, noted that there were 10, 000 registered environmental health officers (EHOs) and 252 corporate bodies providing environmental health services (EHS).
He said that the task ahead of EHOs was to sensitise communities affected by flooding and other natural disaster on the need to guard against acts capable of increasing the disasters. Abonyi stated that environmental health is a multidisciplinary profession that required effective collaboration with all Nigerians, saying that EHORECON created the manpower that would align with various stakeholders in the enforcement of environmental laws . As the regulator of environmental health, Abonyi emphasised that the Council lacked the powers to purchase relief materials directly but have collaborated with the National Association of Environmental Health Officers (NAEHO) to enlighten and provide support to victims of flooding in Kogi State. According to him, “We have re-strategised to bring back the glory of environmental health by placing programmes in the universities, colleges of health technology for higher national diploma, national diploma and other allied certificates.” He enjoined government at all levels to engage the services of environmental health officers (EHO), just as he pleaded with environmental- inclined corporate bodies to assist government in attaining the goals of EHS. Abonyi was optimistic that environmental health could add significant value to the economy in support of the federal government’s quest of diversifying the economy away from fossil fuel.
He assured that the Council would be engaging with Bank of Industry (BoI), Small Scale and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN) and among others to boost the monetary, financial and machinery needs of corporate practitioners. Part of the objectives of environmental health is the prevention of epidemics and the spread of disease as well as the protection against environmental health hazards.
The Bauchi State governor, Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar, hinted that though Bauchi was one of the states affected during cholera outbreak , his administration would double its efforts in the area of environmental health. The governor stated that management of refuse was one of the greatest challenges in the state before his election, which President Muhammadu Buhari observed during his campaign visit to Bauchi. He said that upon his swearing in as the state governor that he immediately engaged the services of a company to assist the government owned environmental agency in the area of environmental health. Federal government has stated its readiness to support EHORECON in the enforcement of relevant environmental laws. The minister of environment, Mallam Ibrahim Usman Jibril noted that environmental health practitioners (EHPs) were duty-bound to assist in attaining the role of the regulatory bodies given that President Muhammadu Buhari believes in excellence in all realms of service delivery in Nigeria.
He reiterated that the professionals should be guided by the ethics of their respective professions which provided the framework for sustainable practice and protection of human rights and values likewise the environment. The permanent secretary in the ministry, Mr Lawrence Leon Aliboh, who spoke on behalf of the minister implored EHPs to prioritise the protection of environment as the bedrock of human living.
He urged practitioners, environmental health officers, technicians and assistants not to compromise their integrity while discharging their duties in respective service delivery point nationwide.
He said, “Every practitioner must be able to serve the communities diligently and uphold the tenets of the profession whose primary objective is the prevention of diseases especially in the rural areas.”
Jibril revealed that whether EHPs are posted in public health department, pest control, waste and sewage collection and sanitary inspection of premises, their ultimate goal should be the protection of human health and environment.
He challenged the Council to be steadfast in the enforcement of relevant laws as a means of attaining efficiency and effectiveness. The minister directed the council and stakeholders to work out modalities for enforcing local content in developing home grown solution for machineries, equipments and practise of environmental health, which he believed would impact positively on the economy currently diversified away from oil and gas. He tasked corporate bodies providing environmental health services (EHS) to explore the opportunity provided by the federal government for small and medium enterprises aimed at improving the capacity of their businesses. To this end, he pleaded with the Council to put in place mechanism for monitoring environmental health even as he reminded them on the need to implement relevant laws to boost professional practice.
-Leadership Newspaper
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