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Philippines
Thursday, March 28, 2024

DOH pushes ‘Zero Open Defecation’

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Only 11 percent of the country’s barangays or only 4,625 out of a total 42,045 are certified Zero Open Defecation where people have abandoned the practice of open defecation, said Health Secretary Francisco Duque III.

The 2017 Philippine National Demographic and Health Survey also showed that 4.5 percent of Filipinos do not yet have toilets and tend to practice open defecation, while another 24 percent use unimproved sanitation facilities.

Duque said this amounts to an estimated 28 million Filipinos whose poor sanitation practices pose a serious threats to the population in terms of health, nutrition, protection, education, environment, and productivity.

Due to this, Duque cited the importance of using a toilet as well as the practice of handwashing with soap after using the toilet and before eating in preventing the transmission of polio, among other diseases.

“Currently DOH is conducting a mass vaccination campaign either through door-to-door activities or at the respective health centers, regardless of vaccination status.

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