ANALYSIS OF THE TOILET SYSTEM EFFECT ON THE SANITATION LEVEL IN KPAKUNGU, MINNA NIGER STATE.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1. Background of the Study

[Alexandar, 2017] The World Health Organization (WHO) defines sanitation as the provision of facilities and services essential for the safe disposal of human feces and urine. . Sanitation may also be defined as the process of bringing about circumstances in the environment that are healthy and sanitary, with the goals of improving the quality of life, promoting public health, and ensuring a sustainable environment [Andrea, 2017]. Sanitation creates the conditions for the appropriate and sufficient disposal of human and animal waste in order to safeguard both the public's and the environment's health. Sanitation was recognized as a basic human right by the United Nations, yet many communities still do not have access to it [Anthony, 2020]. This puts these people at risk for negative effects on their health, dignity, education, and economy. An improved sanitation facility is a facility that hygienically separates excreta from human contact and is only used by members of one household [Aspinall, 2021]. Examples of improved sanitation facilities include composting toilets, ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrines, pit latrines with a slab, and toilets that flush to sewage systems or septic tanks. The Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) in 2017 produced a JMP service ladder as a baseline for evaluating the various nations' levels of sanitation service. The JMP ladder builds on the already established classification of improved/unimproved sanitation facilities by classifying sanitation services as Safely managed, Basic, limited, unimproved, and open defecation [Bichard, 2019]. This classification of sanitation services builds on the improved/unimproved classification of sanitation facilities. It is required that people use improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households, and the excreta that is produced should either be treated and disposed of in-situ, stored temporarily and then emptied and transported for treatment off-site, or transported through a sewer with wastewater and then treated off-site. This is so that SDG 6.2, Safely Managed Sanitation Service, can be achieved. People who use improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households will be considered to have limited service, whereas people who use improved facilities that are not shared with other households will be considered to have access to basic sanitation services. This distinction comes into play in the event that excreta from improved sanitation facilities are not managed in a safe manner. [Bichard, 2019] estimates that approximately 61% of the world's population, or 4.5 billion people, lacked access to sanitation services that were safely managed; 2.1 billion people used either basic toilets or latrines; 600 million people shared toilets among several households; 856 million people used poorly constructed latrines or buckets; and 892 million people still practiced open defecation. [Aspinall, 2021] reports that over 63% of the population in sub-Saharan Africa, or 700 million people, lacked access to improved sanitation, making the area the one with the lowest sanitation coverage worldwide. About 39.9% and 15.5% of households in rural and urban areas, respectively, did not have access to sanitation facilities and therefore engaged in the practice of open defecation [Greed, 2018]. Of the approximately 30.1% of households in Nigeria that used improved sanitation facilities that were not shared with other households, 25.1% were located in rural areas and 36.6% were located in urban areas. [Greed, 2022] Sanitation facilities that are not properly designed or maintained have the potential to taint water sources and spread illnesses that are transmitted via water. The reckless discharge of human waste directly into the environment has been linked to the reproduction of vectors, which may contaminate human food, water, or hands and spread illness through the fecal-oral pathway [Greed, 2022]. In Africa, insufficient sanitation, unclean water, and poor hygiene are responsible for the deaths of over 2800 people per day [Penner, 2016]. Across the world, poor sanitation is responsible for approximately 280,000 fatalities each year from diarrhoea. It has been claimed that Nigeria is experiencing a widespread outbreak of cholera, dysentery, typhoid fever, and helminthic infestation [Penner, 2016]. In addition, 2,771 instances of cholera, including 124 fatalities, were recorded in different communities throughout Nigeria in the year 2013, and all of these cases were ascribed to poor and insufficient sanitation [Inglis, 2021]. [Inglis, 2021] Maintaining healthy sanitary conditions, such as the safe collection, removal, or disposal of human excreta, is an effective and sure way to prevent human contact with feces and outbreaks of diseases that are related to feces. Other methods include washing hands after contact with feces and wearing gloves when handling feces. The provision of decent and safe toilets is very important not only as a means of responding to nature's call but also as an opportunity to improve individual and communal economies. An investment in sanitation reduces the cost of health care, boosts tourism, and improves children's education. On the other hand, a lack of decent and safe toilets exposes children to diseases related to water and sanitation and exposes women to various forms of sexual abuse as they resort to open defecation. This study was aimed to examine the Toilet system effect on the sanitation level in Kpakungu,Minna Niger state.

1. 1. Statement of the Problem

The usage of toilets is on the increase as nations strive to fulfill the sanitation-related objective of the Millennium Development Goals [Inglis, 2021]. Toilets are one of the most frequent methods for disposing of human excreta in countries, and their prevalence is growing as a result. Yet, there is cause for worry that the release of chemical and microbiological contaminants from toilets into groundwater may have a harmful impact on human health. Hence, the study seeks to examine the Toilet system effect on the sanitation level in Kpakungu,Minna Niger state.

1. 1. Objective of the Study

The broad objective of the study is to examine the toilet system effect on the sanitation level in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state. The specific objectives of the study is as follows:

1. To ascertain the factors affecting effective toilet sanitation among redidents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state.

2. To determine the extent of toilet system utilization among residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state.

3. To determine whether the use of toilets system improves toilets sanitation level among the residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state.

4. To determine whether the use of toilets system helps to prevent toilets infection among the residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state.

1. 1. Research Questions

The following questions have been prepared for the study:

1. What are the factors affecting effective toilet sanitation among redidents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state?

2. What is the extent of toilet system utilization among residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state?

3. Does the use of toilets system improve toilets sanitation level among the residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state?

4. Does the use of toilets system help to prevent toilets infection among the residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state?

1. 1. Research Hypothesis

Ho: The use of toilets system does not improve toilet sanitation level among the residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state.

Ha: The use of toilets system improves toilet sanitation level among the residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state.

1. 1. Significance of the Study

The study is significant to the resident of Niger state as they experience many health related problems because many of the families are not aware about sanitation. Most of the people are uneducated which leads them towards poor quality life and bad environment to live. Due to the limited toilets and its unmanaged condition residents in the area are using the toilets randomly.

The study will also be significant to the academic community as it will contribute to the existing literature.

1. 1. Scope of the Study

The scope of this study borders on the toilet system effect on the sanitation level in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state. The study will be delimited to residents in Kpakungu, Minna Niger state.

1. 1. Limitation of the Study

Like in every human endeavour, the researchers encountered slight constraints while carrying out the study. Insufficient funds tend to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature, or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire, and interview), which is why the researcher resorted to a moderate choice of sample size. More so, the researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. As a result, the amount of time spent on research will be reduced.

1. 1. Definition of Terms

Toilet: a fixed receptacle into which a person may urinate or defecate, typically consisting of a large bowl connected to a system for flushing away the waste into a sewer or septic tank.

Sanitation: conditions relating to public health, especially the provision of clean drinking water and adequate sewage disposal.