We need Zoomlion to support us with waste bins for our clean ups - Sanitation Minister

The Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Dr. Freda Prempeh, has called on Zoomlion Ghana Limited to support the national clean-up campaign with waste bins.

She believes that the waste bins will greatly impact efforts aimed at curbing indiscriminate littering within the major cities.

"I am extending a hand to Zoomlion to support this exercise with waste bins to make the exercise more effective," she said.

The Minister made the request when she toured some parts of Accra to inspect the ongoing National Clean-up Exercise being carried out by the Municipal and District Assemblies in collaboration with Zoomlion Ghana Ltd.

According to the Minister, the waste bins will also help with waste segregation and recycling which is one of the ultimate goals of the ministry.

"Waste segregation and recycling is important to managing the country's waste," she stressed.

She therefore called on all stakeholders especially parents and teachers to educate children on waste segregation so they grow with it.

Although the Minister was happy to see some youth engaged in segregating plastic waste from a dump site at Glefe-Dansoman for sale, she was disturbed that they were doing so without any safety precautions and children below 15 years of age were also engaged in the activity.

"None of them wore nose masks or gloves and there was no handwashing facility available. Also, little Children were also involved in this health-threatening activity," she lamented.

"If we segregated our waste from home, these children won't be here doing what we should have done from home," she emphasized.

The Public Relations and Corporate Affairs Manager of Zoomlion Private Services, Mr. Ernest Morgan Acquah, responding to the Minister's call for support said, Zoomlion will do everything possible to help address the sanitation challenges of this country.

"The Minister's call is a good call and we will support her to manage the sanitation of this country because it's part of our mandate," he noted.

With regard to segregation, he said "now that is the way to go because in most countries they're using the waste as a resource and this means that you have to take valuable things in the waste to reproduce something useful," he added.

He reiterated the Minister's call for segregating waste at home (source) explaining that when it is done at source, the recoverable are cleaner and less contaminated as compared to what the youth were in engaged in at Glefe.

Mr. Acquah observed that having a clean environment is not the sole responsibility of the government or service providers but also the citizens "so we all have to put our hands on deck to ensure that we are part of the monthly national clean-up exercise,".

The nationwide clean-up event, which coincided with International Clean Up Day celebrated every third Saturday of September, was under the theme “Cleaning for Safe, Healthy and Sustainable Ghana”.

According to the Minister, to enhance the attainment of the Government’s vision of a clean Ghana and sustainable WASH service delivery, there is a need for all stakeholders to play their prescribed roles effectively.

As part of the cleanup exercise, the Ministry plans to engage in traditional and social media sensitization campaigns, and intensive premises inspection by staff of the District Assemblies, among others.