THE ROLE OF FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTSIN NIGERIA TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE ACHIEVEMENTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

Written by

AMOS, EDIDIONG FRANCIS

B Sc(Second Class Upper), MSc: Environmental Health Management(In View)

edidiongamos@yahoo.com

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INTRODUCTION

Environmental factors play an important role in health and

disease. The search for this knowledge grows in importance as

rapid increase in human populations and economic development

intensify the stresses human beings place on the biosphere

and ecosystems. People want to be warned of major

environmental changes and, if the environment is under

threat, want to know how to respond. The influence of the

environment on health are varied and complex. Diarrhea,

caused by unsafe water, inadequate sanitation and poor

hygiene, accounts for 15 to 18 percent of child deaths

annually. Malaria is responsible for 2.5 million deaths each

year, mostly among young children. Acute lower respiratory

infections (ART), mainly pneumonia – which has been closely

associated with exposure to indoor smoke from cooking with

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biomass fuels, are the leading cause of death for children

under five years of age.

A great deal of the underlying causes of disease, injury, and

death in developing countries lie beyond the purview of the

health care system. They cover a range of physical factors

(inadequate sanitation, water, drainage, waste removal,

housing, and household energy) and behavioral factors

(personal hygiene, sexual behavior, driving habits,

alcoholism, and tobacco smoking). Many of these environment-

and occupation-related health problems turn into public

health problems when they become widespread, a factor

aggravated by inadequate public health infrastructure. Yet,

policies in the sectors responsible for these negative health

impacts are often not based on health criteria.

The subject of Environmental Health (EH) is undoubtedly one

that has generated a lot of debates both locally and

internationally. It is a sector or sub-sector that is largely

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talked about but receiving little or no attention in many

places particularly in developing countries of the world.

During the 1990s, a series of reports from think tank

agencies, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) rated

environmental concerns among the most important health issues

and global threats. They also ranked environmental public

health and sanitation accomplishments among public health’s

greatest accomplishments. The 30-year increase in life

expectancy to 76.7 years from 1900 to 1998 has been

attributed to environmental public health monitoring and

regulation of the water supply, sewage systems, and food

quality, as well as to immunizations and primary preventive

care. As a result of proper sanitation, more than 80% of

human disease has been eliminated. Apart from the general

environmental health duties which had hitherto been mentioned

this cadre of health officers have been very useful in the

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implementation of primary health care services at all levels

of government: federal, state, and local governments

respectively. These should therefore educe the consciousness

of Government at all levels to intensify efforts towards

sustainability of the gains recorded in Environmental health.

This paper brings to fore the role of Government in Nigeria

towards sustainable achievements in Environmental Health.

THE SCOPE OF ENVIRONMMENTAL HEALTH

Meaning of Environmental Health

The World Health Organisation defines Environmental Health as

the control of all factors in man’s physical environment,

which exercise, or may exercise, deleterious effects on his

physical development, health or survival. Environmental

health, therefore, takes account of the various aspects of

human health, including quality of life, which is determined

by physical, chemical, biological, social and psychosocial

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factors in the environment. It also refers to the theory and

practice of assessing, correcting, controlling, and

preventing these factors that can potentially affect

adversely the health of present and future generations.

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, US, defined

environmental health “as branch of public health that

protects against the effects of environmental hazards that

can adversely affect health or the ecological balances

essential to human health and environmental quality.

Components of Environmental Health Services

The key components of environmental health in Nigeria include

waste management; food hygiene and control; pest and vector

control; environmental health control of housing and

sanitation; epidemiological investigation and disease

control; air quality management; occupational health and

safety; water resources management and sanitation; noise

control; protection of recreational environment; radiation

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control; health control of frontiers, air and sea ports and

border crossing; pollution control and abatement; educational

activities (health promotion and education); promotion and

enforcement of environmental health quality standards;

collaborative efforts to study the effects of environmental

hazards (through research); environmental health impact

assessment (EHIA) and the management of emergency situations

(disasters, flooding, disease outbreaks) etc.

(EHORECON:2007).

Improving Environmental Health Management Tools

In addition to political commitment, there are practical

prerequisites for developing and

implementing environment and health strategies. Many

countries urgently need to create or improve the main tools

available to decision-makers for environmental health

management.

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To be effective, this requires a shift from the traditional

approach (involving the separate

consideration of, say, water, air and food quality control

and of waste management) to an

integrated approach that, consistent with those endorsed at

the Lucerne Conference and in

the EU's Fifth Environmental Action Programme, improves the

ways and means of preventing and controlling environmental

hazards and favours actions directed at controlling the

sources of these hazards.

Such tools require an administrative framework that reflects

the partnership between

authorities in environment and health and other relevant

sectors at all levels of management. Partnership with finance

departments is particularly important, since it permits the

use of economic and fiscal instruments.

The main environmental health management tools are: an

environmental health information system; the identification8

and assessment of environmental health hazards and risks; a

framework of enforceable legislation; additional control

measures, including economic and fiscal instruments;

environmental health services; professional education and

training; public information and health education; public

participation; research and technological development.

NATIONAL HEALTH DECLARATION

The following extract from the National Health Policy

document gives a good revelation of the intention of the

Government of Nigeria to better quality healthcare for all

Nigerians.

“The Federal, State and local government of Nigeria hereby

commit themselves and all the citizens by year 2000 and

beyond that is a level of health for all that will permit

them to lead socially and economically productive lives at

the highest possible level.

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All government of Federation are convinced that the health of

the people contributes to better quality of lives and to

sustained economic growth of the country as a whole.

That the people of Nigeria have the right to participate

individually and collectively in the planning and

implementation of their health care.

That primary healthcare is the key to achieve the goal health

care for all the people of Nigeria. These principles of

social justice and equity and the ideals of fairness and

freedom have been captured in the National HealthCare Policy

and equally affirmed in the constitution.”

The Constitution assigns to local government councils

certain functions which are essential elements of primary

health care; environmental sanitation; provision and

maintenance of health services; as well as the provision and

maintenance of primary education.

“With the general guidance, support and technical supervision

of State Health Ministries, under the aegis of Ministries of10

Local Government, Local Government Councils shall design and

implement strategies to the Constitution, and to meet the

health needs of the local community.

Motivation of the Community: The Local Government Councils

shall elicit the support of formal and informal leaders,

traditional chiefs, religious and cultural organizations as

well as other influential persons and groups in support of

community action for health.” This is a clear statement of

delegation of roles and responsibilities to various tiers of

Government.

ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH POLICIES AS PROJECTED BY WHO

The attainment of sustainable development by creating

friendly environment conducive to health can only be realized

through the enhancement of an environment that is free from

biological, chemical and physical hazards emanating from

local, national and international sources. In this regard,

environmental health plays a pivotal role in the endeavor to

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create and foster an environment that is safe to work,

recreate and live. It is in fact one of the most essential

elements and preconditions for development. The primary and

principal step deemed imperative in the effort to deliver

environmental health services is the development and

formulation of comprehensive and sound policy in the sector.

The Environmental Health Policy (EHP) programme aims to

assist countries in their endeavor to realizing the

achievement of sustainable development by creating an

environment conducive to health through the development and

formulation of Environmental Health Policy and

strengthening/development of their capacities to render sound

Environmental Health Services.

The main areas of focus of EHP include:

Providing technical support to countries in the African

Region in development/review of National Environmental

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Health Policies and development/strengthening National

Capacities.

Assisting countries in the formulation of Environmental

Health Policies to realize the implementation of the

Regional Strategy for Health and Environment adopted

during RC 52.

Assisting countries in the elaboration and review of

their policies on the sector.

Assisting countries in developing Policy Implementation

Strategy for proper and effective implementation of the

policy.

Developing and disseminating technical guidelines and

other promotional materials related to policy

formulation, implementation and capacity building.

These policies include but not limited to:

1.Policy Guidelines on Market and Abattoir Sanitation

2.Policy Guidelines on Solid Waste Management

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3.Policy Guidelines on excreta and sewage management

4.Policy Guidelines on School Sanitation

5.National Environmental Sanitation Policy

6.Policy Guidelines on Pest and Vector Controls

7.National Erosion and Flood Control Policy

8.National Drought Preparedness Plan

9.Renewable Energy Master plan

HISTORICAL ACHIEVEMENTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

This cadre of public health workers came into existing during

the colonial era, their statutory function was purely

sanitary inspection then as sanitary assistants to the

colonial masters.

In the 19th century, the colonial masters who executed the

sanitary duties of our environment in Nigeria were known as

sanitary inspectors while the African/Nigerians attached to

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them were known as sanitary attendants. These attendants

acted as aides to their masters to discharge various sanitary

inspection activities like marking of tall trees, service of

abatement notice etc. under their masters’ directives and

close supervision.

As time went on these sanitary attendants were given more

responsibility such as routine sanitary inspection,

collection of water samples, survey for breeding places of

mosquitoes, as well as acting as guides and interpreters.

During the early 20th century, with improved educational

background, these attendants gathered enough experience from

their colonial masters, they were assigned duties such as

cutting down tall trees that were close to the residential

buildings, identification of infectious disease cases,

disinfection and disinfestations, liaison between the

colonial masters and villagers, verification of notices

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issued by their colonial masters (sanitary inspectors),

retention of daily, weekly and monthly returns.

Dr Isaac Ladipo Oluwole brought about changes in the status

of Nigeria health workers. In the 1920s, when Dr. Isaac came

back from Britain as public health physician, he was the

first African Medical Officer of Health (MOH) in the Lagos

colony. He pioneered with vigour, school health services

using the then sanitary attendants, including inspection of

schools and vaccination of schoolchildren in their school. He

started the first Nigerian School of Hygiene at Yaba Lagos in

1920, where qualified persons from all over the Nigeria

trained as sanitary inspectors and obtained the Diploma of

the Royal Institute of Health (RIH) London, which was later,

changed to Royal Society of Health (RSH).

The first problem that faced the modern day Nigerian sanitary

inspectors as early as the 1920 was the outbreak of bubonic

plague in 1924. The practice of the profession which was

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introduced into Nigeria by the colonial government due to

their determination to ensure a safe environment for the

colonial government proved its usefulness. The impact of your

predecessors manifested in the eradication of some of the

major communicable diseases of the 1950’s and 60’s such as

Yaws, Plague and Small Pox and these efforts were well

appreciated by the Nigerian people. Other communicable

diseases spread by filthy environment such as cholera,

Malaria, typhoid etc were equally kept at bay. The older

generation of Nigerian still remember with nostalgia the

effectiveness of the then Sanitary Inspector. The

professional was actively involved in the control of the

plague epidemic. Dr. Oluwole revamped Port Health Duties and

made sanitary inspection a vital instrument for the control

of communicable diseases using entirely the Nigerian sanitary

inspectors.

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All these brought recognition to the sanitary inspectors

among other cadre of health workers in Nigeria . They were

referred to as "Wole-wole" among Yoruba’s, "Nwaole-ala" among

the Igbo’s and "Duba-Gari" among the Hausas. They were a

force to reckon with in that colonial era in the area of

preventive health services in Nigeria.

In the 1930s, the educational qualification and training of

sanitary inspectors had greatly improved. Thus, the colonial

government assigned them the following statutory functions.

Routine sanitary inspection of houses, markets, schools and

communities; Waste disposal and environmental sanitation,

pollution control and industrial sanitation; Water sampling

and sanitation; Port health duties (air, land and seaports);

Control of communicable disease (infectious diseases). Other

duties were, Building and urban planning ; Vector and pest

control e.g. Malaria control; Prosecution of public health

offenders in the court;

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Meat and food inspection; The disposal of the dead (corpses);

Occupational health and factory inspection;

Vaccination/inoculation of both schoolchildren and adults;

Health education on personal and public hygiene was also

included.

The establishment of the World Health Organization in 1948

brought about changes in the profession, thus many people

with Higher Educational Qualification were recruited into the

profession and enhanced curriculum to accommodate the need of

the society.

“This was evidenced in their immense role in the eradication

of Yaws and Smallpox in the late 1940s and early 1970s

respectively.

In 1988, the name of the profession was changed to

environmental health officers in line with the

internationally accepted name of practitioners of the

profession and also to accommodate members of the profession

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who graduated from the university with a degree in public

health, environmental health and epidemiology.

Apart from the general environmental health duties which had

hitherto been mentioned this cadre of officer has been very

useful in the implementation of primary health care services

in the country at all level of government (Federal, State,

and Local Government).

ROLE OF FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS IN SUSTAINABLE

ACHIEVEMENTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

Water Supply and Sanitation

Access to safe water and sanitation is a serious

challenge for Nigeria. Little progress was made up to 2005

but improvements since then have brought the proportion of

the population accessing safe water to 58.9 per cent and the

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proportion accessing improved sanitation to 51.6 per cent.

Nigeria's Vision 2020 is an integrated development plan with

one of its three pillars dedicated to ensuring safe water

sustainability.

The efforts of the immediate past administration in

providing potable water, especially in the urban areas is

commendable. This should continue, because up to 80% of all

human diseases are water borne, and with good water supply

alone, these will be preventable. Refuse disposal is an

expensive business, and in some developed countries,

governments spend as much as 20% of their revenue on refuse

disposal.

The Constitution assigns to local government councils

certain functions which are essential elements of primary

health care; environmental sanitation with the general

guidance, support and technical supervision of State Health

Ministry. Sanitary inspectors were a feature of public health

activities in the olden days and their role in environmental21

health implementation was plausible. Existing staff of health

units in Local Government Councils should be reoriented to

perform this function, and new ones should be recruited and

trained. Sanitation courts should be established in each

Local Government to back their activities and prosecute

offenders who refuse to abate nuisances.

Political Will for Wider Acceptance of Environmental Health

Services

In many places, there is poor political will and commitment.

This lack of will also include the lack of will to make

realistic plans and the poor will to implement plans.

Environmental Health services require commitment on the part

of all stakeholders towards the realization of program goals.

It must be appreciated that mobilization in favor of improved

Environmental Health has been poor, non-specific and

sometimes misdirected. There is need to increase the

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commitment of all. This is particularly required at the State

and LGA levels.

It is so sad that the profession that was once praised is

dying and being painted or branded as olden days profession

and has nothing to offer in the health sector by some other

health professionals. Even though a Federal Ministry was

created and other agencies of environment, yet they cannot

perform to the expectation due to poor structures that

incorporate environmental health officers in most or all

department and non challant attitude of our Governments.

There is no part of Nigeria that has no environmental health

problems ranging from waste (solid, liquid, and gaseous),

erosion, desert encroachment, environmental pollution (air,

water, and land) etc, yet not much is being done to tackle

the problems.

Now Environmental Health Officers are not regarded as it was

before due to Government’s I do not care attitude to their23

services. It is not even amazing for our political leaders to

see how dirty and unhygienic our environment is with waste

everywhere, markets, schools, drainages, health institution,

government offices, residential and occupational environment

etc, yet the concern that the leaders ought to show in giving

more attention in tackling the situation by reviving public

health laws and environmental sanitation is nowhere to be

found.

Environmental health officers are not properly represented in

many aspect of health that bother on their profession. More

so, each Dick and Harry is claiming to be an environmentalist

despite not being so. It has now reached a stage whereby

most or all the policy makers in Federal, State Ministries of

Environment and other Environmental Control Agencies are

occupied wholly(and or partially) without Environmental

Health Officer(s).

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Another lack of attention to the Environmental Health

Officers by the Government is that majority of Government or

all institution has no provision of Office of Environmental

Health Officers. For instance, no Federal Medical Centre has

such office, Federal Hospitals (with the exception of the

few), State Hospitals and many other Health

Institutions/Ministries. While in hospitals, no other health

professional that you will not see, it is only Environmental

Health Officers that cannot be found, as if they do not have

any role to play.

All these must be corrected and Environmental Health

integrated as a veritable vehicle to drive home the

potentials of Primary Health.

In a system where both government and individual priorities

are misplaced in disfavor of Environmental Health, the need

for a planned advocacy strategy becomes very needful to

sensitize all stakeholders towards improved services. There

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is need for both policy advocacy as well as personal advocacy

in favour of Environmental Health. To ensure service

sustainability requires indigenous advocacy. In this wise

everyone must be involved. Everyone who cares can be an

effective policy advocates. The media has a unique role in

this strategy particularly in providing correct information

to members of the public, in letting the government know what

they should be doing, and in advocating for good practices.

Education

At educational level, EHO also are facing lack or even non-

availability of wide ranges of courses in relation to their

profession that they can further their education. Even the

degree programme of Environmental Health and Epidemiology

started by OAU Ile-Ife has been cancelled since with no

standard reason. Courses like occupational health, Preventive

and Social Medicine, Public Health etc are nowhere to be

found in our Universities, if found are reserved for Medical

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Doctors or are Consultancy programmes that are quite

expensive. Prior to 1995, the highest level of qualification

an EHO held was Diploma (of 3 years), it was only in 1995

that HND programme was introduced which produced the first

graduate set in 1998. Despite Environmental health regarded

as the oldest profession in Nigeria , it is very unfortunate

that they can only graduate at HND level due to non-

availability of degree course in the profession. This is not

so in other health professions.Therefore, this wide

educational gap between environmental health practitioners

and other health practitioners cost them to be left behind,

for as at now I do not know how many Professors of

Environmental health, Epidemiology etc we have as compared to

those in other medical profession. Majority of EHO that

passed out then and now preferred to switch to other

profession(s) to further their education due to non-

availability environmental health related courses in our

Nigerian universities. In fact, even those that graduated27

with HND were no longer allowed to participate in NYSC since

1999 after the first two set of the HND programme passed out,

and worst still, there is no position as to when will the

situation be rectified.

This being so, it is clear that Environmental Health Officers

are in big deficit. As of today we have only about 13,000

trained and only 8,000 are registered. This is far short of

at least 22,000 expected, considering WHO requirement of 1

EHO to 800 people. This is what has given room to the

employment of unqualified personnel by various Governments to

do our job, especially States and Local Governments and

giving them all sorts of titles such as Environmental

Marshalls, Environmental Corps etc. Of course garbage in,

garbage out. Results of unqualified personnel manning such

sensitive professional practices is the cause of the unending

epidemic of communicable and transmittable diseases in our

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communities. This situation needs to be addressed and

corrected.

Staff Training, Recruitment and Deployment

So far, no co-ordinated attempts have been made to train

Environmental Health Personnel to take charge of Primary

Health Care at the Local Government Level. This has left a

yawning vacuum in the leadership of Primary Health Care at

this level, with the result that every Tom, Dick and Harry is

now struggling to be designated a Primary Health Care (PHC)

Co-ordinator. At the inception of PHC in Nigeria, it was

recommended that “existing LGA health departments can be

restructured by assigning a Senior Officer of Health to be

the PHC Co-ordinator. If this is not possible, a Senior

Community or public health worker can be designated PHC Co-

ordinator. It will be obvious from here that such functions

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can only be effectively performed by someone with the requisite

training in preventive medicine.

In Akwa Ibom State for instance, all councils are competent

of further training and retooling of Environmental Health

Officers under their employ, and can easily do this. What

needs to be done is a legislation to compel each council to,

first, appoint a competent hand to head its health

department. Thereafter, the Ministry of health should arrange

with Departments of Community Medicine in some Universities

to train these EHOs to obtain an MPH to enable them function

as Senior Officers of health and PHC Co-ordinators. This will

end once and for all the unnecessary bickering currently

going on as to who heads the PHC departments at the Local

Government Level. This is what is obtained in areas where PHC

has taken root, particularly in Western Nigeria, where the

best indices in Primary Health Care in the country are

recorded. Once such structures backed by law are laid, it30

should not be subject to changes at the whims and caprices of

policy makers who feel that Doctors should head all health

facilities instead of working in hospitals where diseases are

treated. Primary Health Care recognizes professionalism,

intesectoral collaboration and concerted approach in form of

consortium. The present arrangement whereby in many Local

Governments, Medical Doctors sit down in office to oversee

waste management is an aberration and a waste of human

resources. They are more needed in the clinics to improve the

dwindling curative services. The position of Environmental

Health Officers in Primary Health Care has been hijacked by

medical health practitioners (most especially medical

doctors), whom their professional orientation centre wholly

on curative health, thus they are not giving any attention to

the preventive aspect of health due to their poor knowledge

on environmental health. They now dictate where the pendulum

of the PHC will swing by hijacking everything whether or not

it is within their profession, for they do not separate their31

duty with those of other profession. Environment Health

Officers (EHOs) can work effectively and efficiently if they

are allowed to do this in a conducive atmosphere. This will

address the institutional neglect Environmental health has

suffered for decades arising from unclear constitutional

responsibilities and inter-agency conflicts. Institutional

strengthening, clear-cut delineation of roles and

responsibilities, removing overlaps of functions will project

Environmental Health profession to its place of pride in

health. Environmental Health Officers should realize that PHC

requires concerted efforts and that no professional group has

the prerogative to dominate PHC inasmuch as role or

professional conflicts should be avoided.

Strengthening Government Policies and Legislations

The need for an Environmental Protection Policy in Nigeria

was initiated by the illegal dumping of toxic wastes in Koko,

in the former Bendel(now Delta) State in 1987. This prompted

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the Nigerian Government to promulgate the Harmful Wastes

Decree which provides the legal framework for the effective

control of the disposal of toxic and hazardous wastes into

any environment within the confines of Nigeria. This was

immediately followed by the creation of a regulatory body,

the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA) in 1988.

FEPA is charged with the overall responsibility of protecting

and developing the Nigeria environment. To put this into

action, National Policy on the Environment was developed.

This is the main working document for the preservation and

protection of the Nigerian environment. States and Local

Government Councils were also encouraged to establish their

own environmental regulatory bodies for the purpose of

maintaining good environmental quality as it applies to their

particular terrain. The Department of Petroleum Resources

(DPR), an arm of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources,

recognizing the national importance of the oil and gas

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industry sector to the continued growth of the Nigerian

economy and realizing that the continued exploitation,

exploration and production of the oil resources has serious

environmental impacts, also decided to set out comprehensive

standards and guidelines to direct the execution of projects

with proper consideration for the environment.

Separate EIA legislation, the EIA Act 86 of 1992, was

promulgated establishing FEPA as the apex regulator, making

EIA mandatory for all developmental purposes (although with

some exceptions). Under it, FEPA has published various

sectoral EIA procedures together with EIA procedural

guidelines in 1995. At the lower levels, States and Local

Government Areas (LGAs) which comprise the second and third

tiers of government were encouraged under Act 59 of 1992 to

set up their own environmental protection agencies.

However, pursuant to the FEPA Act, each State and Local

Government in the country may set up its own environmental

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protection body for the protection and improvement of the

environment within the State. Each State is also empowered to

make laws to protect the environment within its jurisdiction.

All the States have environmental agencies and State laws;

e.g. Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory has issued the

Abuja Environmental Protection Board (Solid Waste

Control/Environmental Monitoring) Regulations 2005 ("the

Abuja Environmental Protection Board Regulations") which

principally governs solid waste control in Abuja. In Lagos

State, the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency Law

was enacted to establish the Lagos State Environmental

Protection Agency (LASEPA). LASEPA’s functions include

monitoring and controlling the disposal of waste in Lagos

State and advising the State Government on all environmental

management policies. Lagos State has also enacted the

Environmental Pollution Control Law, to provide for the

control of pollution and protection of the environment from

abuse due to poor waste management. Akwa Ibom State has35

enacted the Environmental Protection and Waste Management

Agency Law, which established the Environmental Protection

and Waste Management Agency. This Agency is charged with

responsibilities which include identifying and proffering

solutions to environmental protection problems in Akwa Ibom,

and monitoring and enforcing environmental protection

standards and regulations. Ondo State equally enacted the

following laws in this regard: Ondo State Waste Management

Law, 2002; and Waste Management (Enforcement and Offences)

Provisions Regulations, 2002; Ondo State Environmental

Protection Agency Law, Cap50, Vol. 2, Laws of Ondo State,

2006. The functions of the Ondo State Protection Agency

include providing the State Government with policies that

will enhance protection, conservation and development of its

environment in general and environmental technology,

including initiation of policy in relation to environmental

research and technology.

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Many people had argued that policies are non-existent but the

fact is that no nation exists without one form of policy or

the other. Policies directed towards improving Environmental

Health services in Nigeria are weak and ineffective and never

implemented.

There also seem to be some constitutional defects in the role

definition as regards responsibility for Environmental Health

matters. While it is generally believed that Environmental

health services are largely the responsibility of LGAs, it is

a known fact that LGAs as presently constituted, financed and

managed would be unable to ensure a healthy environment. The

need for a reappraisal may be necessary. The National Policy

of Environmental Sanitation championed by the Federal

Ministry of Environment is a right step towards addressing

this problem. However, its implementation must be devoid of

sentiments, and unnecessary bureaucracies.

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In addition to this is the fact that most Environmental

legislations are either obsolete, inconsistent or had failed

to take cognizance of the cultural settings in which they are

supposed to operate. The need for suitable legislations to

address specific Environmental Health issues is urgent.

There is need for Government at all levels to ensure that

policies are directed towards addressing environmental health

problems. Policies must clearly indicate what is to be done,

by who and also include system for monitoring and evaluation

of activities. In addition to this, there is need for

appropriate legislations to address specific issues. The

obsolete Public Health Laws (1958/59) as applicable in

different parts of the country must be reviewed.

EHOAN/EHORECON’s initiative to get a suitable legislation

should be supported by all. If there are grey areas that need

to be addressed, this should be sorted out.

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The machinery of monitoring of Environmental Regulations

should be strengthened. NESREA was constituted for this role.

However, NESREA has not been so empowered to face the

challenge squarely. There are still industrial processes and

products that are not eco-friendly. NESREA should explore

inter-sectoral collaboration with NAFDAC for proper

registration of eco-friendly products.

Funding of Environmental Health Services

How much a country spends on health care as a proportion of

its total national income depends on how much value it places

on health care in comparison with other categories of goods

and services. The Federal Government of Nigeria, for example,

through the National Health Policy and Strategy to achieve

health for all Nigerians, put funding of health care in a

place of pride. It states, among others, that the Federal and39

State Governments shall review their allocation of resources

and that high priority shall be accorded to Primary Health

Care with particular reference to other underfunded areas and

groups.

Furthermore, community resources shall be mobilised in the

spirit of self-help and self-reliance effort should be made

to re-distribute financial allocation among promotive,

preventive, and curative care services to ensure that more

emphasis is placed on promotive and preventive services.

Funding for Environmental Health services have been poor over

the years compared with other sub-sectors. Though it is

difficult to obtain how much had been spent by each tier of

Government on Environmental Health, it is generally believed

that the sector had not been favoured in the allocation of

needed resources. In many States of the Federation, many LGAs

are without a functional refuse van while other implements

required are either insufficient or non available. The

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success of most Environmental Health programmes is directly

dependent on the amount of resource inputs and this has to be

appreciated. In addition to this, lack of resourcefulness is

another factor that has bedeviled the sector. In most cases,

the little resources allocated are really not available to

execute Environmental Health services due to undue

corruption. In many places, Environmental Health services are

seen as one of the main conduit pipes through which funds are

siphoned. The need to be more resourceful is considered very

important. To this end, efforts put in place by the present

administration to fight corruption should be extended to

Environment and related Ministries and Parastatals to curb

corruptions and to bring offenders to book.

41

CONCLUSION

People should see the profession (Environmental Health) that

produces Environmental Health Officers (or Technologist) as

professional, important, and even indispensible in healthcare

implementation and to re-inform other Nigerians about the

role played by them since the time of colonial administration42

and the present Nigeria in shaping Nigeria's health sector

which, as at now, has been downplayed in favour of other

health services (especially curative aspect of health). To

some extent, this curative care is far away from the

community reach and costly to afford. More so, Government at

all levels and our political leaders should be encouraged to

focus their policy toward prevention, which is better and

cheaper than cure in spending much on environment than

fighting disease(s) elsewhere (hospital precisely).

Environmental health Officers should be allowed to execute

their professional duties without unnecessary interference

and infiltration by other health professions. More

Environmental Health personnel should be employed to correct

the deficit of manpower currently experienced in the Country

for sustainable achievement in the nearest future.

43

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