The Minister of Environment, Balarabe Lawal, has raised alarm over the country’s poor sanitation standards, revealing that only about 25 per cent of Nigerians have access to safely managed sanitation facilities, while more than 45 million people still practice open defecation.
Lawal, represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Mahmud Kambari, disclosed this in Abuja on Wednesday during a press briefing to mark the 2025 World Toilet Day. This year’s theme, “Sanitation in a Changing World,” highlights the growing pressures of climate change, rapid urbanisation and widening inequalities affecting sanitation systems globally.
He said the United Nations set aside November 19 to draw global attention to the sanitation crisis, which continues to affect billions of people. According to him, toilets are fundamental to public health, environmental protection and human dignity, yet remain underfunded and poorly managed in many parts of the world.
“Currently, about 4.2 billion people globally live without access to safe toilets, while in Nigeria, over 45 million people still practice open defecation,” the minister said. “Many schools, healthcare facilities and public institutions either lack functional toilets or have poorly maintained facilities. In urban areas, inadequate sewerage systems have led to unsafe disposal of wastewater into rivers and streams.”
He noted that poor sanitation significantly contributes to diseases such as cholera, diarrhoea, typhoid and intestinal worm infections, which continue to claim lives—especially among children under five. He warned that inadequate sanitation also fuels antimicrobial resistance and hampers Nigeria’s progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6.2 by 2030.
Lawal reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to eliminating open defecation by 2030. He cited the Presidential Declaration of a State of Emergency on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, as well as the signing of Executive Order No. 009 on an Open Defecation Free Nigeria—currently under review.
He added that the ministry and key stakeholders have revised the 2005 National Environmental Sanitation Policy to improve guidelines for safe excreta and sewage disposal.
In her remarks, Director of Pollution Control and Environmental Health, Dr Bahijjahtu Abubakar, said billions of people worldwide still lack access to safe toilets. She warned that poor sanitation poses serious risks to women, children and vulnerable groups, fuelling deadly diseases and undermining national development.
The Secretary General of the Nigerian Red Cross Society, Abubakar Kende, stressed that sanitation is a basic human right and called for urgent action to tackle climate pressures, poor infrastructure, overcrowding and cultural barriers. He noted that the Red Cross, alongside government and partners, is driving solutions through the National Strategic Plan of Action on Cholera Control.
“The theme highlights the need for urgent action to protect and expand access to safely managed sanitation in a changing world,” Kende said.
