Strengthen waste management capacity

Waste products from every process of medical activity including diagnosis, hospitalization, treatment and vaccination, should be treated with special attention and under supervision by professional and trained workers since a quarter of hospital waste products on average are contaminated with blood, body fluids, or feces. Any kind of medical waste including syringes, gauze, cotton wool, or test tubes can be smeared with bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoa, parasites, etc. Even water from toilet and leftover food in hospitals can cause infection. Syringes and glass are especially dangerous since they can directly cut skin and cause blood infection.

Establishing proper waste management facility is extremely important considering Niger's environment where major infectious diseases prevail throughout the country with a very high degree of risk. These diseases include: food and water borne diseases (bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever); vector borne diseases (malaria); water contact disease (schistosomiasis); animal contact disease (rabies); respiratory disease (meningococcal meningitis); flu (highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza) and AIDS. Burying waste may be effective but not powerful enough to block spreading of microbes; therefore, burning above 1000°C to wipe out all wet medical waste is recommended. This work is particularly challenging since building and maintaining the high-temperature facility is expensive and requires advanced technology.