UNICEF has stated that nearly one-third of Nigerian children do not have access to enough water.
This report issued on Monday calls for urgent measures to address the problem.
In a statement to mark World Water Day, UNICEF said more than 1.42 billion people, live in areas of high or extremely high water vulnerability in the world.
This simply means that 1 in 5 children do not have enough water to meet their everyday needs.
Mustapha Emmanual Ushadari who is one of the experts on the commodity has appealed to the government to ”provide potable drinking water, especially to children”.
“Potable drinking water is good. The government should provide at least potable drinking water, most especially for the children. The kids, they need potable drinking water. Before going to school, they need to drink water, before doing their day-to-day activities”, Ushadari said.
UNICEF’s report further noted that the figures are particularly worrying, especially in Africa’s most populous nation.
“26.5 million Nigerian children, that is 29 percent of the nation’s children experiencing high or extremely high water vulnerability,” the UN body said.
About 100,000 Nigerian children are said to die annually of water-related diseases.
A UNICEF representative in the West African country noted that ‘’the world’s water crisis is here and children are the biggest victims’’.
UNICEF also said that despite “some progress” by Nigeria, ”there is still much more work to be done to ensure that all Nigerians have access to adequate, quality water and hygiene services.”
Although about 70 percent of Nigerians are reported to have access to basic water services, more than half of these water sources are contaminated, the UN body added.
