• This article commemorates World’s Environment Day which came up on Sunday 30th August 2026.

 

 

Ade A. AJAKAIYE

 

Nigeria’s development debate is loud on infrastructure, oil, and foreign investment. Yet, one foundation remains missing from the conversation: environmental sanity. A sane environment is not a luxury for rich nations. It is the basic condition where air is breathable, water is safe, drains flow, and public spaces do not threaten health. Without it, every road we build and every school we open sits on unstable ground.

 

I begin with health, as physical sanity starts with clean surroundings. The link between filth and disease is old, but we keep paying for it as if it were new. Blocked drains become breeding grounds for mosquitoes, spreading malaria that kills thousands yearly. Open refuse and open defecation that contaminate wells and streams, leading to cholera and typhoid outbreaks everywhere as often that could be prevented with basic sanitation.  

 

The World Bank estimates that poor sanitation and hygiene cost Nigeria about 1.3% of GDP annually in healthcare costs, lost productivity, and premature deaths. That is billions of naira draining out of the economy because waste sits where it should not. The billion that could have been spent on other sector of the economy.

 

Hospitals cannot be the only answer, because environmental sanity is a cheaper prevention. Daily waste collection, covered drains, and functional public toilets reduce disease burden faster than building more clinics. When communities are clean, children miss fewer school days, workers miss fewer workdays, and families keep money that would have gone to drugs and hospital bills.

 

On mental health, I must point out that psychological sanity needs calm spaces and this is why we rarely connect dirty surroundings to mental health, but the connection is real. Waking up daily to face overflowing gutters, scattered refuse, and the smell of decay, creates low-level stress. Psychologists call this “environmental stress.” It builds a sense of helplessness and reduces people’s belief that things can change.  

 

It has been proven that children who grow up seeing filth as normal, internalize it as normal. That shapes expectations. If your environment signals neglect, you begin to expect neglect from government, from neighbours, and from yourself.  

 

Conversely, clean and orderly spaces calm the mind. Trees, clean environments, swept streets, and flowing drains restore a sense of order, beauty and control. This is why urban planners in other countries treat parks, street cleaning, and waste management as mental health policy. For Nigeria, environmental sanity is a low-cost intervention that can improve public mood, reduce aggression, and increase civic participation in governance, communities and organizations.

 

On aesthetics, which is that visual sanity that changes behaviour, it is necessary to point out that Nigerians are known for their pride in personal appearance, but that pride often stops at the gate! A clean, well-kept environment sends a clear message: this place matters, and the people here matter too. When streets are swept clean and drains are covered, people litter less. When public spaces look neglected, people behave as if they are truly abandoned.  

 

This is what is commonly referred to as the broken windows theory in practice. Small signs of disorder invite bigger disorder. A single pile of refuse attracts ten more. A blocked drain becomes a permanent dump site. And that is one observes in our country today. Very sad!

 

Aesthetics is not just about decoration. It is about signaling order and attracting investment. Investors do not set up factories or shops in places that look and smell neglected. Tourists too do not return. Even small businesses suffer when customers avoid dirty markets. Visual sanity makes a city looks alive and vibrant, and a place that looks alive tends to become alive economically.

 

On the aspect politics, it is clear that governance sanity demands accountability.   Environmental sanitation is a political problem because it requires collective action and clear responsibility. In Nigeria, that responsibility is split. The Constitution assigns refuse collection and sanitation to local governments. But most local governments lack funds, equipment, and autonomy. State governments step in unevenly, and federal agencies only intervene during outbreaks and emergencies.  

 

The result is a cycle of blame. Nobody owns the problem, so nobody solves it. Laws against littering and open defecation exist on paper, but enforcement is weak and selective. Politicians prefer projects they can commission with ribbon cutting over drain maintenance that nobody sees. What a country!

 

Other countries solved this by creating one agency with a clear mandate, funding it consistently, and making officials answerable to citizens. Rwanda’s monthly “Umuganda” which means: community clean-up, works because, the government, traditional leaders, and citizens all have a role and are held to it. Governance sanity means ending the blame game, assigning responsibility, and measuring results publicly.

 

Ethically speaking, moral sanity is a personal choice. Policy alone will not make Nigeria clean. Even with perfect funding and laws, sanitation fails if people do not take ownership. Dumping refuse in gutters, throwing sachets on the road, and defecating in the open are individual choices.  

 

“Yes, but there is no bin” is true in many places. Yet communities that set their own rules do better. Markets in Aba, Lagos, and Ibadan that run cleaning rotations and enforce small fines are visibly cleaner than those that wait for government. Religious and traditional leaders also matter. When they frame cleanliness as dignity, as respect for neighbours, and as a religious duty, behaviour shifts faster than through fines alone.  

 

Moral sanity is what makes policy stick. It is the moment a citizen decides not to throw that sachet out of the car window, even when no one is watching. That choice, multiplied across millions, is what changes a city.

 

In conclusion; government must rebuild the foundation. Nigeria cannot build a modern economy on a foundation of filth and decays. Environmental sanity is the missing layer under health, education, investment, and civic trust. It is cheaper to prevent disease than to treat it. It is easier to attract investors to clean cities. It is faster to restore public trust when government keeps the environment in order.  

 

The path is clear: assign one agency, fund it, enforce the law fairly, and renew the culture through schools, religious leaders, and community action. Rwanda did it in a decade. Nigeria can do it too, if we stop treating sanitation as an afterthought. Development begins with sanity. And sanity begins the moment we refuse to live in filth and refuse to let others do so either.

 

As I end this write – up, the old adage about cleanliness being next to godliness echoes in my ears. Nothing can be more appropriate than to end this article with that quote: Cleanliness is next to godliness; a goal that we all humans seek.

 

 

• Ajakaiye is a retired AIG of Police, A writer, poet and public commentator.