STGS ADOPTS REVISED NATIONAL GUIDELINES TO FAST-TRACK COMMUNITY VALIDATION
PRUWASSA trained State Task Group on Sanitation on new standards to end OD and attained Certification by November 2026.
STGS ADOPTS REVISED NATIONAL GUIDELINES TO FAST-TRACK COMMUNITY VALIDATION
By Rotmwa Paulina Kassam
The government of Plateau State has taken a significant step toward eradicating open defecation as the State Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (PRUWASSA) undertook an intensive five-day refresher workshop for the State Task Group on Sanitation (STGS) at Gwol Motel in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area.
The capacity-building event focused on mastering the revised national certification protocol to prepare monitoring teams for upcoming validation and certification exercises across the state.
Addressing participants at the opening session, the General Manager of PRUWASSA, Engr. Godfrey Nuhu Dashuwar stated that aggressive efforts are underway across multiple local government areas to expand sanitation coverage. He expressed optimism that Langtang North would soon replicate the success of Riyom Local Government Area, which previously achieved certified status and earned national recognition for the state.
The General Manager noted that the administration of Governor Caleb Mutfwang has deployed substantial financial resources, bolstered by interventions from the Sustainable Urban and Rural Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion project, to overhaul water supply and hygiene infrastructure.
He commended the members of the task group for their dedication and personal sacrifices in driving the campaign forward despite operating without a dedicated budgetary allocation.
Echoing these commitment levels, Geologist Jelkyes Dakat, General Manager of the Plateau State Municipal Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (PLAMWASSA) highlighted the executive mandate to ensure equitable water and sanitation distribution across small towns and rural zones. He assured the state task team of sustained institutional collaboration to achieve the state's public health target.
However, the chairman, STGS, Nde Philip Gompang, observed that Plateau State could have achieved complete eradication much earlier had the initiative received priority attention from its inception. He pointed to operational disconnects among line ministries and highlighted the absence of functional community-based committees and local government task groups, which complicates seamless data sharing and field coordination.
Extending the discussion on operational bottlenecks, the representative for local government WASH directors, Sanitarian Semshak Augustine Dakup of Wase Local Government Area, revealed that local council departments frequently face severe underfunding, sometimes receiving as little as ten per cent of their annual budgetary allocations and appealed for more funds for effective service delivery.
Presenting the state's sanitation and hygiene situation, Sanitarian Magdalene Jibri outlined progress alongside remaining hurdles. Citing official survey metrics, she noted that open defecation rates dropped from sixty per cent in 2019 to fifty-six per cent in 2021, while access to basic sanitation rose from twenty-seven per cent to thirty per cent.
According to Magdalene, basic hygiene access also saw a slight increase from six per cent to nine per cent over the same period. She cautioned that unimproved sanitation poses severe biological risks, explaining that microscopic amounts of human waste carry millions of pathogens that easily contaminate food and water sources through flies, fluids, and unwashed hands.
Encouraged by the strategic roadmap, Elizabeth Dawap, a participant at the training, confirmed the readiness of the trainees to deploy the new certification standards immediately. She stated that field resources are currently concentrated on Langtang North Local Government Area to ensure the region meets all compliance metrics for official declaration in November 2026.
