Sylvia Ngige Where women’s power meets real life
Don’t Let Your Drainage Become Mosquito Hotel
By Sylvia Tochukwu-Ngige
[AWKA July 10, 2026]
It started with one small rain last week in Awka. By evening, the gutter in front of Mama Chika’s shop was already full. Black water. Plastic bags. Pure water nylons. And by 8pm, mosquitoes were having a party. Three days later, her youngest had malaria. Again.
Mama, I know you’re tired. Between work, school runs, and cooking, who has time to check gutters? But this rainy season, the gutter is not “government’s problem.” It’s our problem. Because where water stands, sickness breeds. And the mosquitoes are not charging NEPA bill to enter your house. So let’s talk like women in the market. Plain and simple.
Why is your drainage blocking every time it rains?
It’s not juju. It is just 3 things we keep doing:
1. “Pure water, just throw am there.” Those nylons don’t dissolve. They gather and form a dam.
2. Sweeping dirt into the gutter– Dust, leaves, sachet water, after 2 rains, it becomes like concrete.
3. Waiting for “them” to come and clear it – By the time “them” comes, your compound is already flooded. And the happens? Stagnant water brings mosquitoes, mosquities malaria, typhoid, and skin rashes for our children.
4 Simple Things Every Mother Can Do This Week
You don’t need ₦100k. You just need 20 minutes and consistency.
1. Adopt “Your 5-Meter Gutter”
The gutter in front of your house is your responsibility..
Every Saturday morning, wear hand gloves, carry broom, and remove nylons and leaves. If every mother clears her own side, the whole place will be free. Remove nylons, bottles, leaves.
If every mama does her 5 meters, the whole street will be free.
2. Tie Your Waste Well-Well
Don’t dump refuse in the drain because “waste people no dey come.”
Use a sack, bucket, or poly bag and tie it. Keep it till the disposal truck comes.
One nylon in the gutter can block water for 20 houses.
3. Break the Mosquito Cycle
Mosquitoes breed in stagnant water in just 7 days. So, turn over buckets, tires, and coolers that collect rain. Pour kerosene or used oil in gutters that can’t drain. Cut grass around your house. Mosquitoes rest there. Use net. Even if there’s light. Especially if there’s no light.
4. Teach the Children
Your pikin that throws pure water on the road? Call them.
“Don’t block our gutter. That water will enter our house and make us sick.” When children understand, they become your best environmental officers.
The truth we need to swallow
Government will do their part. But malaria doesn’t wait for council meeting. The ₦8,000 you will spend on malaria drugs this month can buy mosquito net, disinfectant, and gloves for 3 months of gutter cleaning. Prevention is always cheaper than treatment.
Mama, this is your season to lead
You are the CEO of that home. If your compound is dry and clean, your children are safer. If your street gutter is flowing, your neighbor’s children are safer too. This rainy season, let’s not wait for flood to teach us a lesson.
Grab broom this weekend. Rally 2 neighbors. Clear that gutter.
Then boil water, drink tea, and sleep knowing you fought mosquitoes and won. Because a healthy home starts with a flowing drainage.
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Sylviangige Question:
Mama, what’s the biggest thing blocking drainage in your area? Nylons, sand, or blocked channels?
Drop it in the comments. Let’s share ideas and save each other’s children from malaria this season ❤️
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Sylvia Tochukwu-Ngige Founder https://www.sylviangige.com | Where women’s power meets real life
Links:
1. NCDC Malaria Prevention: https://ncdc.gov.ng`
2. Anambra State Ministry of Health: https://health.anambrastate.gov.ng
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