AMA engineer tells residents to register now to get household toilets
Mr Graham Sarbah, the Director of Drains of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), has called on residents to register with accredited contractors to get household toilets.
He said the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area-Sanitation and Water Project (GAMA-SWP) is selecting and processing some communities that would benefit from the provision of toilet facilities in their individual homes.
Mr Sarbah, also an Engineer in-charge of the GAMA-SWP, made the call during community engagement programmes at Sabon Zongo, organised by Janok Foundation, a Community-Based Organisation and funded by Water Aid, Ghana.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Mr Sarbah said residents in selected areas such as Glefe, Mamponse, Chorkor, Gbegbeyise and Sabon Zongo would benefit from the GAMA-SWP project.
The project, with the overall objective of increasing access to improved sanitation and water supply with emphasis on low income urban communities, is being funded by the World Bank.
“The selection is based on the fact that about 70 per cent of the people live in single rooms and resort to the use of public places of convenient or engage in open defecation thereby exposing residents to a lot of health risks.
“The GAMA-SWP, more especially, is to strengthen management of environmental sanitation in the Greater Accra Region,” Mr Sarbah said.
He said the AMA was embarking on vigorous public health education with the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development to ensure that residents got new sustainable, environmentally friendly and affordable toilets and also upgraded existing ones in schools in Accra.
The AMA engineer said the different types of toilets and accessories that were being promoted include Biological Fitters which contain digesters.
“These types of toilets are designed for areas that have limited access to water and provide a safe non-polluting solution.
“Others are traditional concrete septic tanks which serve as the containment and treatment plant for waste from flush toilets and Kumasi Ventilated Improved Pit (KVIP) latrines,” he said.
Mr Sarbah said 50 per cent of the cost of the various toilets mentioned would be borne by the residents themselves based on their choices.
Madam Jane Amerley Oku, the Chief Executive Officer of Janok Foundation, said it was the responsibility of everybody to let sanitation be part and parcel of everyday activity to reduce diseases.
She said: “If we all manage our attitudes and create a clean environment, things would be better for us all.”
Mr Joseph Ashley, the District Director of the Ghana Water Company and a resource person, urged community members to treat water bodies and sources better.
He said most people did not know how to store water safely and they ended up polluting it leading to water-borne diseases.
Alhaji Hamisu Baako, the Chief of Sabon Zongo, urged the Ghana Water Company to be swift in addressing issues pertaining to broken pipes to prevent the water getting contaminated.
He called for the need to engage in extensive sensitisation campaign on the proper and safe ways of water storage and handling.
Source: GNA