ILOILO CITY, Nov. 27 -- 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 to achieve the Level 1 ZOD status.

Under Level 1, barangays should have no open defecation in the surrounding and no exposed feces in their area, thus a toilet, even a communal or shared toilet, is a requirement.

"We are planning to reach the target by next year, but one of our problems is the coastal areas. One of the req...