Women in food and beverage industry urged to keep surroundings clean
The Communications Manager of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, Mrs. Isabella Gyau Orhin, has urged Ghanaian women in the food and beverage industry, especially Muslim women, to keep their surroundings clean to safeguard the health of their customers.
Speaking at the Third Annual Regional Conference of the Federation of Muslim Women’s Association in Ghana (FOMWAG) in the Ashanti Region, Mrs. Orhin said Muslim women food vendors have a key role to play in safeguarding public health, since they are key stakeholders in the food and beverage industry.
“We must adhere strictly to standards of food hygiene and environmental sanitation principles as given by the various health and environmental sanitation authorities,” she admonished.
Mrs. Orhin further urged women in the food and beverage industry to adopt proper ways of disposing of all manner of waste, in order to prevent the proliferation of disease-causing organisms in their places of business, households and neighbourhoods.
“Getting a waste bin with a fitting cover near where we practice our trade plus regular lifting services will solve our environmental sanitation problems,” she said.
The Ashanti Regional President of FOMWAG, Hajia Fatima Yasmeen Appiedu in her speech said “it is an undeniable fact that the quality of the environment we live in, to a large extent, determines the quality of our lives. Healthy and hygienic environment promotes healthy living, which in turn leads to longevity and a healthy nation”.
She added that a healthy environment can only be attained by recognising the need for concerted efforts in that direction.
“We must strive to pull our strengths and resources together to make a positive and meaningful impact on our environment,” she said.
Hajia Appiedu further stated that the nation cannot rely on only the efforts of the Assemblies and Waste Management companies to solve the problems of environmental sanitation.
She said every citizen has a role to play in ensuring that various communities and businesses are kept clean and free from diseases. “We need to change our attitude towards the environment and begin to cherish and keep it well,” she enjoined.
On his part, the renowned Islamic Theologian and Educationist, Sheikh Ishaak Ibrahim Nuamah, stated that women are a special creation of God endowed with special skills for taking care of the home and children.
“No wonder the popular adage says if you educate a woman, you educate a nation”. He thus, urged women to take good care of their children and train them with the care of their environment.
The Sheikh encouraged them to be ambassadors of sanitation and teach their children the importance of keeping their environment clean.
By Edmund Smith-Asante