By Stella Odueme
The Lift Above Poverty Organisation (LAPO) has called on federal, state and local governments to prioritise access to safe water, adequate sanitation and proper hygiene facilities in Nigerian schools, warning that inadequate Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services threaten children's health, dignity and educational outcomes.
The organisation also urged authorities to establish clear institutional responsibilities, provide dedicated funding for maintenance and strengthen accountability mechanisms to ensure that school WASH facilities remain functional and accessible.
The calls were contained in a communiqué issued at the end of LAPO's 33rd Annual Development Forum, held at the Shehu Musa Yar'Adua Centre, Abuja, on Thursday, October 22, 2026.
The forum, themed “Safe Water, Healthy Learning: Advancing WASH in Nigerian Schools,” brought together government officials, education stakeholders, development partners, civil society organisations, public health experts and other participants to examine challenges affecting access to water, sanitation and hygiene services in schools.
According to the communiqué, the forum observed that a significant number of Nigerian schoolchildren lacked reliable access to safe drinking water, functional toilets and handwashing facilities.
It cited the 2023 national WASH mapping survey, which indicated that nearly 29 million Nigerian children had no drinking water in their schools.
The participants noted that the problem extended beyond the construction of facilities to their effective maintenance, explaining that boreholes, toilets and other WASH infrastructure frequently became unusable because of inadequate maintenance, insufficient operational funding and unclear responsibility for repairs.
The forum also identified weak institutional accountability and inadequate budgetary allocations as major obstacles to sustainable school WASH services.
It observed that responsibilities were spread across education authorities, water agencies, state and local governments, school administrators and development partners, without sufficiently defined accountability for the continued operation and maintenance of facilities.
The communiqué stressed that constructing infrastructure without dedicated maintenance plans and recurrent budgetary provisions undermined the sustainability of investments and reduced their benefits to schoolchildren.
On the implications for education, the forum warned that inadequate access to safe water and sanitation exposed pupils to preventable health risks, disrupted learning and compromised their dignity.
It added that the absence of private and functional toilets, as well as adequate menstrual hygiene facilities, disproportionately affected adolescent girls and could contribute to absenteeism and interrupted education.
Children with disabilities were also identified as disadvantaged by inaccessible or unsuitable WASH facilities.
The participants further observed that parents, school-based management committees and community organisations could play important roles in monitoring facilities and reporting breakdowns, but their involvement in WASH oversight needed to be strengthened.
They therefore called for a shift from measuring the success of school WASH projects by the number of facilities constructed to assessing whether such facilities were safe, functional, accessible and available for daily use.
To address the challenges, the forum recommended that every public school in Nigeria should have a clearly designated institution responsible for its water, sanitation and hygiene services, with defined obligations and timelines for addressing faults and service disruptions.
It called for all school WASH projects to incorporate comprehensive maintenance plans and identifiable recurrent budgetary provisions to guarantee the continued operation of facilities.
The forum also recommended the establishment of publicly accessible records showing the operational status of school WASH facilities and the institutions responsible for their upkeep.
According to the communiqué, such records would enable parents and communities to monitor performance and demand timely remedial action where facilities were not functioning.
The participants urged government at all levels and development partners to institute regular inspections, monitoring systems and performance reviews, supported by clear accountability mechanisms.
They also advocated stronger collaboration among federal, state and local governments, education authorities, water and sanitation agencies, school administrators and other stakeholders to eliminate gaps in responsibility and improve service delivery.
On inclusion, the forum called for school WASH facilities that guarantee privacy, safety and adequate menstrual hygiene support for girls, while remaining accessible and suitable for children with disabilities.
It further urged development partners and implementing agencies to integrate long-term maintenance, operational funding and institutional ownership into the planning and execution of all school WASH projects.
The communiqué also called for greater community awareness and citizen engagement, urging parents, local organisations and civil society groups to promote hygiene practices, monitor services and hold responsible institutions accountable.
It recommended that access to safe water, adequate sanitation and hygiene facilities be integrated into school infrastructure planning and education policy implementation, noting that these services were essential to improving enrolment, attendance, retention and learning outcomes.
The forum further stressed the need to assess the success of WASH projects based on students' assessments, although the communiqué did not specify the assessment criteria or methodology.
It urged LAPO and other stakeholders to sustain engagement with government institutions, development partners and communities to promote the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the recommendations.
Earlier, the President of LAPO, Mrs Faith Osasuwa in her welcome address, said the organisation established the Annual Development Forum to provide a platform for discussing urgent national issues requiring the collective attention of government and policy implementers.
She said the forum, which began in 1994, had brought together policymakers, government officials, corporate leaders and other stakeholders for more than three decades to exchange ideas and explore practical solutions to Nigeria's development challenges.
According to her, this year's theme reflected LAPO's commitment to addressing one of the fundamental challenges affecting education and the well-being of Nigerian children.
Citing the 2021 Water, Sanitation and Hygiene National Outcome Routine Mapping (WASHNORM) report, published in June 2022, she said only 37 per cent of schools in Nigeria had access to basic water supply services.
She added that only 35 per cent had access to basic sanitation services, while just 30 per cent provided basic hygiene services, including handwashing facilities, soap and water.
The report, she said, also indicated that only about 15 per cent of schools had budgeted funds for maintaining their WASH facilities.
She described the figures as more than statistics, saying they represented the daily struggles of millions of Nigerian children who attended schools without clean drinking water, decent toilets and facilities for washing their hands.
She warned that such conditions could encourage the spread of preventable diseases, reduce school attendance and disrupt learning.
The LAPO president said every child deserved to learn in a safe, healthy and dignified environment, adding that achieving this required stronger partnerships, greater investment and sustained action.
She reaffirmed the organisation's commitment to improving lives by supporting efforts to create opportunities for children to learn and thrive in healthy environments.
She also called on stakeholders to translate the forum's deliberations into concrete actions that would improve WASH services in schools across the country.
Chairperson calls for action beyond dialogue
The forum reaffirmed that safe water, adequate sanitation and proper hygiene were indispensable to children's health, dignity and educational development.
The Fotum called on all levels of government, relevant agencies, development partners, school administrators, civil society organisations, parents and communities to work together to ensure that every Nigerian child had access to safe, functional, inclusive and sustainable WASH facilities at school.
The participants also commended LAPO for sustaining the Annual Development Forum as a platform for dialogue, knowledge exchange and advocacy on critical national development issues.