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The Mayor of Accra, Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije has said the 2015 cholera statistics is evidence of the success of the National Sanitation Day Exercise. He explained that only 34 cholera cases were recorded last year representing a significant improvement against 2014 which he attributed to the intensification of the National Sanitation Day Exercise.

Speaking to pressmen after the observation of the NSD in Accra, Mr. Vanderpuije mentioned that measures have also been instituted to avoid loss of lives through flooding, as the rains prepare to set in. The Greater Accra Region recorded over 20,500 cases of cholera between June 2014 and February 2015. Out of the figure, 121 deaths were recorded. This, according to medical doctors was the single largest outbreak in the history of Ghana.

Government in November 2014, therefore, initiated the National Sanitation Day Exercise to instill and encourage good personal hygiene as well as improve environmental sanitation in the country.  On the eve of Ghana’s 59th Independence Day, the Country observed the 17th edition of the NSD and the Mayor of Accra attributed the reduction in cholera cases to the success of the National Sanitation Day Exercise.

“In 2014, we had over 24,000 cases of cholera nationwide and lost over 600 lives, the story is different this time with Accra recording only 34 cases, this means the exercise has paid off”, the Mayor intimated. He stressed that the local government authorities remain committed to creating a sanitary environment and reducing disease cases in the country.

Mr. Vanderpuije indicated that the launch of the tricycle concept president Mahama in collaboration with waste management experts, Zoomlion will go a long way to improve sanitation in Ghana. The AMA boss added that measures including the dredging of the Odaw and the Korle Lagoon among others will help prevent the loss of lives through flooding as was witnessed on June 3rd last year.

He called for increased community participation saying that sanitation is a shared responsibility and everyone must play their roles to improve sanitation and prevent avoidable diseases. The Accra Zonal Manager of Zoomlion Ghana Ltd, Gershon Sogbey said the rapid population growth and changes in people’s lifestyles had led to an escalation in the production of solid waste in the country and, therefore, the company had improved upon its manual tricycle waste collection to a motorized version.

He reiterated Zoomlion’s Commitment to the NSD explaining that the company will continue to provide, logistics and equipment’s as well as human resource to boost the capacity of MMDAs to collect waste. In a related development, the Ashanti Regional Minister, Alexander Ackon is advocating increased environmental sanitation to promote economic development.

He explained that ensuring proper sanitation will reduce the economic burden in terms of cost on health care provision and improve available human resource to boost the socio-economic development of Ghana. Speaking to the media after the 17th National Sanitation Day (NSD) exercise in Kumasi,  He called for increased community involvement in the programme in order to promote hygiene and avoid preventable diseases.

The NSD started on November 1, 2014, and has since been observed on every first Saturday of the month as a national exercise aimed at inculcating in the citizens the observance of good sanitation habits. The 17th edition which happened  to be the 3rd this year witnessed the participation of officers from various security agencies as well as celebrated music artistes under the leadership of Broadway Entertainment.

The celebrities, including Rex Omar, Reggie Rockstone of VVIP and Guru expressed gross concern about how filth was posing a great danger to the lives of many Ghanaians. They urged Ghanaians to make it a daily habit to improve upon their hygienic conditions by cleaning their communities daily.

Rex Omar charged Ghanaians to de-politicize the exercise and see it as a national call to duty.

The Ashanti Regional Minister, Alexander Ackon bemoaned the level of apathy with which some residents took the exercise. According to him, it is wrong for members of communities who are guilty of creating the filth to just look on as authorities and waste management companies cleared the filth.”It is important to deepen the involvement of communities in the National Sanitation Day Exercise in order to ensure its sustainability,“ he stressed.

Mr. Ackon also called for attitudinal change intimating that the economic costs of clearing filth and its attendant diseases can be reduced if the attitude of the people towards sanitation is changed. The Kumasi Metropolitan Chief Executive, Kojo Bonsu, expressed gratitude to waste management experts, Zoomlion, for their support.

Zoomlion Ghana Limited has been supporting the exercise since its inception with logistics and equipment. Personnel from Zoomlion were deployed to desilt drains and clear rubbish with the introduction of the tricycle concept to properly dispose of accumulated rubbish.