WELCOME
ADDRESS BY SANITARIAN ZAKARIYAU ALIYU; NATIONAL PRESIDENT ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
OFFICERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (EHOAN) AT THE OCCATION OF FEDERATION OF WEST
AFRICA ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL MEETING, CITY HOTEL IYANA IPAJA AGEGE
LAGOS. 28th and 29th DECEMBER 2011.
PROTOCOLS
It
is my honour and privilege to welcome you all to the maiden conference of
federation of Environmental Health professionals in West Africa. The
antecedence of our great profession has been very profound and nodal in the
history of mankind. Indeed there has not been any well acknowledged
civilization in the history of mankind that did not have one form or another of
a system of human health and environmental control for its sustainable
development. Religions and cultures also have extolled the virtues of
environmental health and hygiene. Human sophistication and development has come
to formalize these virtues into a profession which we belong.
In
West Africa the spirit of neighbourliness, cooperation and experience sharing
among us are the driving forces that have informed the need for this federation
meeting. As is common saying ‘’Diseases know not political borders’’ especially
at this time of globalization, the profession of Environmental Health cannot but
come together to uphold those very principles and practices that have bound us
together in the practice of Environmental Health profession.
We in West Africa sub-region are not only a
geographical convenience but a people with common cultural and historical
identity that continue to bind us in our quest for socio-economic advancement.
The history of this profession will not be complete without recalling the great
role it played in the complete eradication of small pox in the 70s. Since then
there have been emerging challenges to both the health and the living
environment of our citizens. These challenges have also informed some of the transformations
experienced in the training, nomenclature and practice of the profession especially
here in Nigeria. It is a matter of concern to us that despite the progress the
world has experienced some of our member states are still the same as at during
the colonial era.
Some
of the emerging challenges to the practice of Environmental Health now include:
1.
The build-up of hazardous wastes in our homes and industries.
2.
Electronic waste [E-waste] dumps largely as a result of imported used
electronic gadgets.
3. Climate change and the ecological shift in
diseases zones.
4.
Environmental pollution (water, air and soil).
As a matter of emphasis, issues pertaining
to spread of diseases or environmental pollution do not recognize political
boundaries. No matter how good a member state is performing if a neighbouring
country remains adamant about its roles and responsibilities to the environment
and health, the efforts of the neighbour may become fruitless or
counterproductive. That is the essence of regional co-operation. That also was
the justification for institutions like West Africa Health Examinations Board (WAHEB)
in the training of Public Health Superintendents now Environmental Health Officers
that harmonizes training curricula and Examination for Anglophone West Africa.
Nothing stops the revitalization and strengthening of this protocol and even a
further expansion to include all francophone countries.
Concerning a harmonized practice regimen of
the profession, pertinent questions include how we streamline our code of professional
practice, who and how do we enlist and license members in the practice to
ensure the necessary discipline and control. On the whole how do we project the
image of the profession in our member states for the benefit of our citizens? This
meeting should be able to address these questions. I also understand that umbrella
professional Association of West Africa Environmental Health officers once
existed but however, now moribund. Once again, this conference will serve as
the foundation for a revitalized ‘’CONFERENCE
OF WEST AFRICA ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PRACTITIONERS ASSOCIATION’’ (COWAEHPA). We are happy to announce the
development of a draft constitution
for presentation and vetting by this meeting.
My
fellow colleagues in Environmental Health, there are no short-cuts to success
as there are also no successes without sacrifices. At this time of merry-making
and holidays, we are assembled here for a very noble cause. This I believe is
in the spirit of sacrifice. In the same vein our commitment to this cause and
financial sacrifices are most desirable at this critical period of our
reformation.
To
our most cherished institutions [WAHEB and EHORECON] we cannot thank you enough
for all the support to making this conference a success. It is our hope that
after this maiden meeting each member country should be able to properly
organize and strengthen itself financially and administratively to attend or host subsequent federation meetings of our great
Association.
Finally,
it is our hope that these two days of our meeting will lay the foundation of a greater
and progressive profession that is enviable among the committee of professions
in WEST AFRICA.
Thank
you and God bless.
No comments:
Post a Comment