The Lagos State Government has said it will ensure that public and private schools in the state observe sanitation in a bid to prevent diseases among students.
The Permanent Secretary, Office of Environmental Services, Dr Omobolaji Gaji, disclosed this on Thursday during the maiden edition of an interactive session with stakeholders on school sanitation, held in Alausa, Ikeja.
He said, “The issue of sanitation in schools is a global concern and from the assessments carried out by the World Health Organisation and the United Nations in 2018, only 66% of schools around the world have basic sanitation services accessible to pupils within the school premises. It is known that a lot of our children are constrained to missing classes due to inaccessible toilet facilities in schools.
There is no better time than now to come to a roundtable to discuss this pertinent issue as our state is the economic nerve centre of the country with an ever-increasing population and consequential pressure on the environment. We will collaborate with others to ensure that sanitation in Lagos schools is given utmost priority.”
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Mr Abayomi Abolaji, who was represented by Mrs Suleman Idowu, noted that the provision of clean water, adequate waste disposal and proper hygiene will safeguard the health of students.
The founder of FABE International Foundation, Tope Okunnu, said, “Schools can incorporate waste recycling methods to tackle waste build-up and through this also generate profit to build better structures for students.”