Five startups have won N3.5 million each totaling N17.5 million and four months of mentorship at the Water Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) Hackathon Innovation Fair 2.0 to end open defecation.

The five innovators that emerged winners after the hackathon competition held in Lagos were Schrodinger Tech, Retreasure, Junkyard, Green Cycle, and Sparkling Light.

The Minister of Water Resources, Engr. Suleiman Adamu, who presented the awards, said that the innovations were designed to address the challenges of open defecation and enhance access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene.

Adamu said in his keynote address that WASH provides an excellent platform for innovators and entrepreneurs to showcase their ideas.

‘’It is my hope that the ideas and initiatives showcased at this hackathon will be brought to fruition so that the startups can contribute to plugging into identified gaps for more effective intervention in the sector.

‘’The theme for this year’s fair, “Innovation for Sustainable Growth in the Sector,” is timely, I mean against the backdrop of certain concerns about the shortfalls in the issue of access to safe water.

‘’It is also an important condition and plays a critical role in the development of the nation’s economy.

“It is a critical component of our nation’s economy, and is essential to exploiting globally available opportunities for the resolution of the challenges of the sector,” Adamu said.

Adamu added that the water sanitation sector offered immense opportunities for investment, job creation, and poverty reduction.

He said that the existence of this potential was probably the major equally significant resource in the sector.

Adamu noted that in spite of the generally acknowledged substantial investments in the sector, much more needs to be done to improve access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene for citizens.

According to him, moreover, the sector is also beset with a myriad of challenges mainly infrastructure, capacity, as well as full-service delivery.

Adamu said that in 2022, stakeholders found investment opportunities, estimated at about $3.8 billion in those sectors.

According to him, this represents a significant opportunity that drives innovations and investments and allows opportunities to integrate creative solutions that would contribute to the resolution of identified challenges.

“This initiative will further strengthen governance, and improve access to safe water, sanitation, and services to all Nigerians.

“Through this initiative, the country’s voice will be among those countries that have developed local innovative solutions in addressing challenges of the sector.”

According to the minister, hopefully, the solutions showcased at the hackathon will help strengthen the national action plan for WASH and complement other national initiatives.

He said other national initiatives included the preparedness to expand the water supply, sanitation, and hygiene which was launched in 2016.

The minister said that the initiative was launched as a national collaborative instrument to mobilize resources and harness efforts toward improving access to water, sanitation, and hygiene.

The Chief Corporate Service Officer, of IHS Nigeria, Mr. Dapo Otunla, said that the organization was committed to ending open defecation by 2025.

Otunla said that 3,000 books on open defecation had been donated to communities across Nigeria and 13 mechanized solar boreholes had been installed across communities.

He added that about 138 communities had been impacted and over 18,000 lives touched all in the effort to achieve the objectives of the WASH initiative.

The Chief WASH Officer, UNICEF Nigeria, Dr. Jane Beva, in her technical presentation, highlighted the challenges of the WASH initiatives.

Beva said that climate change, water, land, and air pollution due to poor household and industrial waste management were among the challenges in the sector.

One of the winners, Sparkle’s Light, Ms. Amida Olaniyi, expressed her appreciation and excitement for the award.

Olaniyi said that her products, which are cleaning products, would help the WASH programs as they would enhance open defecation eradication.

The 2023 WASH Innovation Challenge and Incubation Programme aims at supporting innovators and early-stage ventures in WASH by providing ideas, evaluation, and funding among others.

The initiative inspired by FMDQ had IHS Nigeria, Nigeria Climate Innovation Centre, and Financial Centre for Sustainability as partners.