Rite Place Health Initiative, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), has appealed for access to quality water for Nigerians to eliminate waterborne diseases.
The NGO made the call on Thursday in Abuja at its 2024 International Conference, themed “Beyond Access – Quality Matters”.
The NGO pledged to push the campaign to the grassroots across Nigeria.
The conference, attended by stakeholders in the water quality space, aimed to highlight the importance of quality water in preventing waterborne diseases
Dr Chukwumezie Okolo, President/Executive Director of Rite Place Health Initiative, emphasised the need for collective action to address waterborne diseases like diarrhoea, giardiasis, dysentery, typhoid fever, and salmonellosis.
“This is our first edition of Beyond Access – Quality Matters conference, an international conference focusing on water quality.
“We aim to achieve quality water with this theme because, over the years, discussions around water have been on access, and we feel that needs to go hand-in-hand with quality within the context.
“Our idea is that everybody understands the importance of quality; that’s the only way we can address waterborne diseases or water-related diseases.
“We think that what we need to do is join hands with the government, partner with the government; all hands must be on deck to focus on the provision of quality water.”
Dr Forster Ihejiofor, Commissioner for Agriculture in Anambra State, stressed that quality water was essential for life, adding people must demand better water quality.
On his part, Mr Eche Asuzu, Principal Assistant General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), urged Nigerians to take responsibility for their health and environment, rather than relying solely on the government.
Mrs Angonimi David-Imeh, Executive Director of Hope Raisers Global Foundation, promised to develop post-conference resolutions to champion the campaign for quality water.
He also promised to take the campaign to all parts of the country to educate Nigerians on the importance of quality water.
