Stakeholders in the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene sectors want the government to prioritize measures to address the issue of open defecation in the country.
This comes on the back of the Ghana Statistical Service survey which revealed that 17.7 percent of the country’s population still practice open defecation.
The menace, according to the stakeholders, is alarming.
The National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) has expressed concerns about the deteriorating state of sanitation in Ghana, as well as the performance of various Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies in achieving Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) targets.
The commission notes that over 17 percent of the country’s population engages in open defecation, which is worrying, and various assemblies must aid in addressing the menace.
According to the Director-General of the NDPC, Dr. Kodjo Esseim Mensah-Abrampa, the practice threatens Ghana’s chance of achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6.2, which states that by 2030, access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and ending open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations, must be attained.
“The sad thing is that we still have 17% of our people who do it anywhere. And that is dangerous, this is the challenge we are facing. How do we reduce this and attain the target for ourselves?
Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Specialist with World Vision Ghana, Yaw Attah Arhin, said studies have revealed that open defecation is polluting various water bodies.
He said the government must prioritize actions to end the practice.
“The water at the household level is also contaminated with faecal contamination. Open defecation is affecting water sources and we have to deal with it,” he opined.
Project Coordinator of the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi Metropolitan Area Sanitation and Water Project, Ing George Asiedu, said the project has drastically played a role in ensuring that most households get toilet facilities.
He added that the programme must be funded and extended to other regions.
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