The USAID/Nigeria Lagos Urban Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (LUWASH) Activity has awarded N1,723,003,058.62 grants to eight community-based organisations (CBOs) to improve Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) service delivery across Lagos State with a view to curb cholera outbreak in Lagos communities.
This development was unveiled at a two-day workshop to officially launch the second set of grantee activities by USAID/Nigeria LUWASH and provide the signed grantees with essential information about the LUWASH Activity, including its operational framework and expectations, setting the stage for successful project implementation.
Between May and June 2024, LUWASH awarded the first grants of N1.09 billion to seven local organisations to improve service delivery in the Lagos State Water Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) sector.
The current workshop which was attended by representatives of the grantee CBOs, officials of USAID/Nigeria LUWASH, and some media professionals, was held at The Sojourner by Genesis Hotel, Ikeja GRA, Lagos.
According to an advisory from USAID/Nigeria LUWASH, the organisations awarded the latest grant include JAM Foundation, Equitable Health Access Initiative Nigeria, South Saharan Social Development Organisation, Humanity Family Foundation for Peace and Development (HUFFPED), Women’s Right to Education Programme (WREP), Bread of Life Development Foundation, Society for Water and Sanitation, and Chamagne Foundation.
These grants, awarded under the Capacity Building, Research, and Advocacy Fund (CAREVO Fund), aim to enhance the operational and outreach capacity of the CBOs that provide WASH services, with a focus on communities underserved by public utilities. “These grants are awarded and will be managed in compliance with USAID and U.S. Government regulations governing Grants Under Contracts, as well as LUWASH’s internal grant management policies.”
Additionally, the workshop seeks to strengthen the technical and managerial capabilities of the grantee organisations in key areas crucial to WASH project success, such as project management, monitoring and evaluation, financial management, and gender and social inclusion.
LUWASH Chief of Party, James Racicot, urged the grant awardees to positively employ the grants to achieve the LUWASH objectives.
Racicot noted that through the initiative, LUWASH aims to reduce cholera transmission, morbidity, and mortality rates in Lagos State.
He added that it would promote behavioural change to prevent communicable diseases and improve WASH facilities in low-income communities.
“We have no doubt that all of you will succeed with the proposals that you have submitted,” he said to the grantees.”
He noted that the grantees were selected because they were going to help achieve the overall outputs and objectives of the LUWASH activity.
“So, we urge you, the grantee, to take advantage of all the training and orientation that you will receive because ultimately, we do not want to have issues with the management of the grants, but rather focus on the implementation and the success.
“The LUWASH Activity is very serious about engaging prominent, enthusiastic, CBOs in Lagos and Nigeria and we plan to do that over the next few years as well.
“The expectations for these organisations will feed into the LUWASH overall objectives of eradicating cholera outbreak in Lagos State.
“So, the USAID/LUWASH activity has several components, including working on the infrastructure for the water supply, governance, and support to the Lagos State WASH sector institutional stakeholders.
“But through the grants under contract programme, called the CAREVO fund, we are able to target specific needs that we have either seen recently or that have been on the ground for a few years,” Mr Racicot said.
In her presentation, LUWASH Compliance Director, Patricia Dyer-Thomas highlighted the importance of grantees following due process in implementing projects, saying they must ensure honest and responsible business patterns. “Anything done with U.S. taxpayers money must observe U.S law; when violations are not reported the grants can be cancelled.”
According to her, corrupt practices must be prevented. Grantees have a responsibility to prevent sexual abuse, being dishonest, avoiding conflict of interest, among other vices.
“We consider bribery, kickback as fraud,” she added.
A grantee, Babatope Babalobi, executive director, Bread of Life Development Foundation, said his organisation will be implementing a 12- month programme titled ‘Wole-Wole In Action Against Cholera’ in Agege Local Government Area (LGA).
“Through USAID support, we will introduce hygiene and sanitation inspectors, called ‘Wole-Wole’ in the local Yoruba language.”
The ‘Wole-Wole’ officials, will through behaviour change enforce sanitation practices and penalise violators. With the achievement of desired outcomes, the practices could be replicated in other LGAs.
“We are targeting 1,100 households in Agege LGA; we are also targeting 550 water vendors and 550 food vendors with training.”
“The overall objective of this programme is to stem the outbreak of cholera,” Babalobi added.
On her part, the Executive Director of Women’s Right to Education Programme (WREP) in Nigeria, Dr. Mimidoo Achakpa said her organisation will be working in the area of WASHCOM (Water Sanitation and Hygiene Committees) that already exists in local governments.
“We are working towards a behavioral change for the community people, and will create awareness because for now, we are mindful of the fact that cholera does not exist again in advanced countries. But what we plan or intend to do basically is to sensitise them to forestall further, if there is any outbreak of cholera in the communities where we will be working. “Our intervention will enlighten people to know what to do about preventing cholera and then also safeguard their sanitation”.
