February 16, 2026
Beyond the Borehole: Why Infrastructure Alone is Failing the Children of Ibadan South West
- Melody Adesina, SRHIN
In 2019, approximately 37,000 Nigerian children under five died of diarrhea. This averages to roughly one death every 14 minutes.That is 37,000 families every year left with an empty seat at the table. In 2025 and 2026, the lack of clean water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) continues to be a primary driver of child mortality in Nigeria, with over 100,000 children under five dying annually from water-borne diseases. In Ibadan South West, we refuse to let our schools be the next place where this tragedy unfolds. At the CWHA Initiative, we aren’t just installing taps,WE ARE STOPPING THE CLOCK!.
For many families living in rural communities, access to water does not always mean access to safe water. Water is fetched daily from streams, shallow wells, or communal boreholes. It is stored in buckets, kegs, and drums. It is used for cooking, bathing, and drinking. Yet too often, that same water becomes a source of illness rather than life.
Clean water is not a privilege. It is a fundamental public health necessity.
Unsafe water and poor hygiene practices remain major causes of preventable diseases in many communities. Contaminated water can transmit bacteria, viruses, and parasites that cause: Diarrheal diseases,Cholera outbreaks, Skin and eye infections, Malnutrition in children
Roughly 70% of students in some Nigerian regions are occasionally or frequently absent due to illness. In many rural environments, where sanitation systems are weak and the members of these communities like hygiene awareness, one contaminated water source can affect hundreds of households.
The result is obvious: illness leading to missed school days, reduced work productivity, increased healthcare expenses which can result in deepening poverty.
But this cycle can be interrupted.
Access Alone Is Not Enough
Many interventions focus solely on infrastructure, drilling boreholes or installing water tanks. While these are important, experience and observation shows that infrastructure without awareness is unsustainable.Water can be clean at the source and still become contaminated during storage.Hands can be washed occasionally but not properly. Children may understand hygiene lessons but have parents or relatives who do not understand the importance of hygiene at home.Approximately 73% of diarrheal and enteric disease burden is linked to poor WASH access.
This is why the Clean Water and Hygiene Awareness Initiative emphasizes awareness and education alongside access. Sustainable health change happens when communities understand not only what to do, but why it matters.
A Community Centered Approach
The most effective health interventions are not imposed; they are cooperative interactions.
Community leaders, parents, teachers, and youth representatives play essential roles in ensuring sustainability. By involving members of the community in education sessions and decision making processes, hygiene practices become integrated into daily life rather than treated as temporary campaigns. When ownership shifts to the community, progress becomes self-sustaining.
What You Can Do
Improving water safety and hygiene standards requires collective effort. Whether you are a public health professional, parent, student, volunteer, policymaker, or concerned citizen, your involvement matters.
You can:
- Volunteer in community awareness programs like THE CLEAN WATER AND HYGIENE AWARENESS INITIATIVE
- Support hygiene education campaigns
- Advocate for improved water and sanitation policies
- Share reliable information within your friends
- Partner with organizations like THE SLUM AND RURAL HEALTH INITIATIVE working directly in vulnerable communities
When we prioritize safe water and hygiene awareness as individuals or a community, we do more than prevent disease. We create conditions where children can learn without interruption, families can thrive without constant medical expenses, and communities can build healthier futures.
References:
- The United Nations Children’s Fund (2018) Water, Sanitation and Hygiene . Accessed online at:
- The United Nations Children’s Fund Over 100,000 under-five Nigerian children die from water-borne diseases annually(2020). Accessed online at: