Balarabe Lawal, the minister of environment, has raised alarm over the growing sanitation crisis in Nigeria, warning that poor environmental hygiene is fueling the spread of infectious diseases such as cholera, monkeypox, dengue fever, and COVID-19.
Lawal stated this on Thursday in Abuja during a ministerial press briefing held in preparation for the 2025 National Environmental Sanitation Day (NESD) observance.
The minister who was represented by Bahijjahtu Abubakar, the Director of Pollution Control and Environmental Health, emphasized that unsanitary conditions create a breeding ground for vector-borne diseases, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.
