THE GIST of Editorial for UPSC Exams : 14 FEBRUARY 2019 (Swachh Nigeria (The Indian Express)

Swachh Nigeria (The Indian Express)

Mains Paper 4: Governance
Prelims level: Water, Sanitation and Hygiene
Mains level: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation

Context

•  Nigeria is a country of great people with an estimated population of 191million as of 2018.
•  Located in Sub-Saharan Africa, it is a large country with tremendous natural and human resources.
•  However, Nigeria faces a critical challenge in its Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector.
•  While it has made significant progress in national access to improved water supply from 40 per cent in 1990 to 69 per cent in 2015, there was a great decline in access to piped water on premises from 32 per cent in 1990 to 7 per cent in 2015 in urban areas.

Sanitation a revolution for both countries

•  The national access to basic sanitation stands at a low level of 33 per cent, with an estimated 47 million persons practising open defecation, the second highest globally.
•  During the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) era, the country made several efforts towards improving access to sanitation.
•  A new programme, Partnership for Expanded Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (PEWASH) was developed in 2016 to improve the situation and bring sector actors together.
•  Nigeria and India share similarities, which include a large population, decentralised government structure and WASH challenges.
•  Both countries have been at the top of the global open defecation ladder.
•  India’s on-going Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) Open Defecation Free by 2019.
•  The success of the SBM is an inspiring model for Nigeria; Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Conference (MGISC), in October 2018.
•  A mass movement, campaign at the national and sub-national level, a clear cut strategy for carrying this out.

Way forward

•  Like India, Nigeria has been able to demonstrate a high-level political will for the WASH sector.
•  In November 2018, President Muhammadu Buhari declared a state of emergency and launched a new National Action Plan for the sector.
•  The plan has five components — governance, sustainability, sanitation, funding and financing and monitoring and evaluation.
•  It proposes an 18-month emergency phase, five-year recovery phase and 13-year revitalisation strategy for the sector.
•  It also proposes the establishment of a National WASH Fund to incentivize reform and infrastructure revitalisation.
•  The cross-cutting nature of water and sanitation means that they directly and indirectly impact the achievement of the other SDGs.

Online Coaching for UPSC PRE Exam

General Studies Pre. Cum Mains Study Materials

Prelims Questions:

Q.1) Government of India implements the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) via
a) Anganwadi centres
b) Krishi Kiosks
c) Common Service Centres (CSCs)
d) Single Window Facilitation Centres (SWFCs)

Answer: A

Mains Questions:
Q.1) SBM IS SILENT REVOLUTION IN COUNTRYSIDE, ANALYZE THE PROGRESS AND PROBLEMS FACED BY IT.