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800 Nigerian Children Die Of Poor Sanitation Daily – UNICEF
 
By:
Sat, 17 Oct 2015   ||   Nigeria,
 

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says at least 800 of about 1,400 child deaths in

Nigeria are caused by diarrhoea daily.

It attributed the poor state of affairs to poor sanitation and inadequate water.

UNICEF in a statement signed by the Chief of Communication, Doune Porter, on Thursday in Abuja, said children at the first month of their lives were very vulnerable to diseases easily transmitted through unwashed hands.

It said: “Over 800 of the approximately 1,400 child deaths from diarrhoea each day can be attributed to inadequate water, sanitation or hygiene.

“Infants in the first months of life are particularly vulnerable to diseases transmitted by unwashed hands.”

It said an average of 82 per cent of people wash their hands before eating, while only 53 per cent of people wash their hands with soap after defecation.

It also said only about 14 per cent of people washed their hands with soap after cleaning a child’s faeces, which posed a serious public health risk.

UNICEF in the bid to curb poor hand washing practice would collaborate with partners to reach at least 10 million Nigerians through high profile hand washing demonstrations in schools and communities.

 

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