Dr Bawumia commissions integrated recycling, compost plant in Wa
A recycling plant with the capacity to process 400 tonnes of waste per day has been commissioned at Kperisi, a suburb of Wa, in the Upper West Region.
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The integrated recycling and compost plant has the capacity to process all types of waste in the region's 11 municipal and district assemblies, including managing and turning compost waste into raw and valuable materials.
It also has a modern ecosteryl microwave treatment equipment that can process up to 5,000 kilogrammes of hazardous medical waste per day. The plant, which is said to be the first of its kind in northern Ghana, is expected to provide 300 direct and 1,000 indirect jobs.
Partnership
The Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, who commissioned the facility last Monday, said the project was a partnership between the government and Zoomlion Ghana Limited, a subsidiary of Jospong Group of companies.
He said it demonstrated how the government worked with the private sector to benefit the country. Dr Bawumia, who is also the flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the 2024 presidential election, said the government was determined to revolutionise the country's waste management sector.
He said the government was now concentrating on job creation after implementing social intervention initiatives in the country over the past seven years. The Vice-President said the government declared its intention to construct 16 recycling plants and 14 medical waste treatment facilities across the country to improve waste management.
"This makes Wa the seventh place so far where the plant had been commissioned in the country. “The recycling and composting plant facility will serve the purpose of receiving and sorting municipal solid waste in Wa and its neighbouring towns and communities in the Upper West Region, and the waste would be processed using a state-of-the-art processing machine to convert the organic component into compost," he said.
Dr Bawumia commended Zoomlion for the project and expressed the hope that more of such inspiring investments would emerge from the private sector across the country. He lauded the Executive Chairman of Zoomlion, Dr Joseph Siaw Agyepong, for buying into the government’s vision to transform the waste management sector.
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A Deputy Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources and the Member of Parliament (NPP) for Sissala East, Amidu Issahaku Chinnia, also said that the project would provide sustainable employment for the people, and thanked landowners for their contribution to the facility's construction.
Statistics
Dr Agyepong said records of the UNDP suggested that the nation generated about 12,710 tonnes of municipal solid waste each day, 60 per cent of which was organic. He said the Kperisi-Wa plant would create around 960 bags of compost fertiliser per day and a total annual output of more than two million bags from the 10 plants across the country.
Seth Ansah (right), Head of Marketing, Accra Compost and Recycling Plant, demonstrating the recycling processes of the plant to Dr Mahamudu Bawumia (2nd from right), Dr Joseph Siaw Agyepong, and Stephen Yakubu (2nd from left), Upper West Regional Minister
Dr Agyepong said that would produce organic compost and improve eco-friendly practices to support the agricultural sector. He said the facility used digital technology that allowed healthcare professionals to schedule waste pick-ups with a smartphone code to ensure efficiency and client satisfaction.
The executive chairman expressed hope that the project would impact the communities and also create further opportunities for the people in the region.
Gratitude
The Upper West Regional Minister, Stephen Yakubu, expressed gratitude to the government and Zoomlion for the project which, he said, would better the lot of the people. He said the citing of the plant in the region would enhance the tourism potential of the area and also be a centre for research institutions.