By Sambiru Duut Eliah, GNA
Wa, Dec. 14, GNA – Players in Ghana’s private sector have been urged to consider investing in sanitation as a business venture by building toilet and urinal facilities to help curb the menace of open defecation across the country.
Private sector participation in constructing sanitary facilities for commercial purposes is viewed as the surest way of helping to ensure that quality services are provided to the public.
Mr Martin Dery, the Director of ProNet North in the Upper West Region, who made the call, expressed worry that many areas in Wa, the regional capital, lacked toilet and urinal facilities, a situation that forces many residents to resort to defecating openly.
He was speaking during the launch of Upper West Open Defecation Free (ODF) League table where traditional rulers, political actors, heads of departments, civil society organizations, NGOs and sanitation officers among others participated.
The sustainable way of curbing the public health hazard of open defecation, he said, was for residents with the wherewithal to seize the opportunity of the absence of washroom facilities in public spaces and construct some which could also provide income for them.
“If you construct a nice toilet facility and write an inscription on it like VVIP, people would rush to purchase your services and you can develop yourself out of that,” he said.
Mr Issahaku Amidu Chinnia, the Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, called on traditional leaders to invoke their powers of authority that would deter people from defecating in open spaces.
He appealed to landlords and landladies to construct household latrines in their homes since tenants would be left with no option than to employ open defecation means.
Alhaji Dasaana N. S. Adamu, a former Wa West District Chief Executive, appealed to political leaders to show some level of commitments to achieving ODF and urged the public people to change their attitudes towards sanitation.
“If traditional leaders do not partake in the ODF campaign, their subjects would not take our efforts serious,” he said.
Guli-Naa Seidu Braimah Nubalanaang, the Paramount Chief of Guli Traditional Area, was of the opinion that traditional rulers have been missing in the fight against open defecation adding that many them are unaware of the ongoing advocacy.
Madam Seram Asimah, a representative of WaterAid Ghana, a donor partner to the Regional Inter-Coordinating Committee on Sanitation, pledged her organization’s support to help the Region achieve ODF status.
She said WaterAid was committed to providing the needed support to ensure the problem of open defecation is addressed.
GNA
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