Iloilo city: Ninety-eight barangays, or 54.44 percent of the 180 barangays here, have achieved Zero Open Defecation (ZOD) status as verified by the Department of Health and the ZOD team, an official said Thursday. In a press briefing, Jennifer Christie Avenir, head of the Environmental Sanitation Division of the Iloilo City Health Office, said the city is hoping to have at least 90 percent of the barangays achieve the Level 1 ZOD status.

According to Philippines News Agency, under Level 1, barangays should have no open defecation in the surrounding area and no exposed feces, thus requiring at least a communal or shared toilet. "We are planning to reach the target by next year, but one of our problems is the coastal areas. One of the requirements is to have a toilet that is connected to the septic tank," Avenir said.

As of 2024, she said 95.04 percent of 99,728 households in the city have toilets connected to septic tanks. Less than 5 percent, mostly in coastal areas with informal settlers, have no toilets. Avenir mentioned that those in coastal areas directly dispose of their feces into the river or drainage systems.

During their validation, they target areas with informal settlers and educate the residents on the importance of cleanliness to prevent acute gastroenteritis. "Once there is open defecation, our source of water can be contaminated," Avenir emphasized. She explained their campaign focuses on behavior change and the use of sanitary toilets.

Avenir noted the possibility of requiring external funding to support coastal barangays and highlighted the necessity of support from barangay officials to achieve this target.