NorCot household without toilets will be penalized

KIDAPAWAN CITY - Starting next week, barangay officials from a remote village in a hinterland town in North Cotabato will impose penalties on households without sanitary toilet and proper sewage system. A violator would be fined P1,000, according to barangay officials of Barangay Kabalantian in Arakan, Cotabato. On Monday, the Barangay Kabalantian will be declared ‘zero open defecation’ (ZOD) after it passed requirements set by the Rural Health Unit of the Arakan municipal LGU and the ACF International, a humanitarian non-government organization (NGO). Other than Barangay Kabalantian, three more remotest villages in Arakan have been declared ZOD since 2013.These included the barangays of Kinawayan, which became the first to declare open defecation-free Mantangkil and Anapolon. These barangays, reports from the Arakan’s RHU, have already 100 percent sanitary and functional toilets and proper waste disposal in place. Reports said the ZOD declaration was made possible by the efforts and commitment of the Arakan municipal government, Rural Health Unit, barangay health workers, midwives, and officials from barangays where the Water, Hygiene, and Sanitation (WASH) projects of the ACF International are being implemented. Reports from Arakan LGU said that other barangays in Arakan, which are not covered by WASH project, were inspired by the outputs of the previous barangays and embraced the Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach in implementing ZOD. In fact, Barangay Badiangon, also located in the hinterland of the Arakan Valley complex, has replicated the CLTS approach and has also been declared ZOD.