Akwa Ibom ranked the cleanest state in Nigeria for 2025, the latest edition of the State of the Nigerian Environment Report (STONE) 2025 has said.
The National Coordinator, Clean-Up Nigeria, Mr Ene Owoh, said in Abuja on Wednesday that the state recorded a accumulative score of 79 percent to win the STONE 2025 Unbroken Green Crystal award Trophy and medal of service for the 8th consecutive times, from 2018 to 2025.
Owoh, who is also the Secretary of the National Technical Study Group (NTSG),
said that the results were arrived at during the State of the Nigerian Environment Report STONE 2025 unbroken and the Cleanliness Performance Index Ratings of all states in Nigeria held in Abuja recently.
The 15-member NTSG, led by Prof. Solomon Balogun, conducted the yearly study from November 2024 to November 2025.
“Ebonyi and Enugu State followed closely, ranking 2nd and 3rd place, with 65 percent and 56 percent respectively, followed by Bauchi, Plateau, Cross River, Anambra, Lagos, and FCT,” Owoh said.
Owoh said the six geopolitical zones produced cleanliness champions, namely Akwa Ibom State in the South-Sout zone with 79 percent; Enugu State in the South-East, 65 perent; Plateau State in North-Central, 52 percent; Bauchi State in North-East, 50 percent; Lagos State in South-West, 48 percent, and Kaduna State in North-West, 35 percent.
The study, Owoh said, combined physical verification of all states and towns in Nigeria with a score point of 20 percent and satellite imagery system that collected spectral data scoring 80 percent monthly.
Besides, he said the study used five variables, namely street/road cleanliness, vegetation and drainage control, waste management services, public opinion poll (POP), and knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of hygiene and sanitation measures by the people.
He said the report revealed that in 2025, there was an 8 percent performance in the procurement of waste management equipment by governments at all levels, although the health of sanitation workers dropped from 31 percent in 2024 to 28 percent in 2025.
The incidence of sanitation-related diseases, the report said, increased to 43 percent in 2025, against 29 percent recorded in 2024, while the hygiene and sanitation practices of the people dropped to 32 percent in 2025, against 36 percent recorded in the previous year.
Other findings showed that Open defecation reduced from 24 percent in 2024 to 19 percent in 2025, with Nigeria remaining the second country with the highest open defecation rating globally.
“Notably, in 2025, out of Nigeria’s estimated 240 million population, 187.2 million people are living in unclean environments, based on satellite imagery data,” the report said, adding that the life expectancy of ordinary Nigerians dropped from 50 years in 2024 to 47 years in 2025.
Owoh called on governments at all levels to increase funding for waste management services, while urging citizens to prioritise hygiene and sanitation practices.
He advocated for increased construction of public toilets to reduce open defecation and supported the establishment of health and environment clubs in schools nationwide to promote environmental awareness.
Expressing the willingness of Clean-Up Nigeria to partner with the government and private sectors to improve cleanliness ratings nationwide, Owoh commended the Wife of the President, Oluremi Tinubu, for her green initiative project, while urging the Tinubu administration to adopt a green environmental agenda, focusing on city and nature living, energy research, green economy, and resources management. (NAN)
