PUBLIC AWARENESS OF EXISTING ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH REGULATIONS AND THEIR APPLICATION IN URBAN AND PERI-URBAN AREAS OF ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA

Limited public awareness of existing environmental health regulations, failure to implement them and support their execution when violated often result in a poor environmental situation. The purpose of this study was to assess the public knowledge of existing environmental health regulations and their applications in the urban and peri-urban environment of Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. A descriptive study was conducted to assess the knowledge and practices of the study population regarding existing environmental health regulations: built environment, solid and liquid waste management, air and noise pollutions, and their implementation. A single-population proportion formula was employed to calculate sample size and samples were selected from households in the two sub-cities of the Addis Ababa City Administration. A total of 845 households (98.9% response rate) were randomly selected and included in the study. The results revealed that of the selected regulations, 56% of the participants knew the standards on environmental protection and sanitation, and 40% reported knowing the regulations on solid waste management. Ownership of assets and education were strong determinants of public awareness of selected environmental health regulations. The public awareness on existing environmental health regulations in the study area was found to be low.