Punish Landlords Without Household Toilets- Sanitation Minister to MMDAs

The Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Mrs. Cecilia Abena Dapaah is calling on Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to particularly make life uncomfortable for landlords who have failed to take urgent steps to construct household toilets in their properties.

The sector minister blames the worrying trend of open defecation on properties without household toilets.

Speaking on behalf of the Minister, the Deputy Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Mr. Michael Gyato charged MMDAs to hold landlords who do not have toilets in their properties responsible for their inactions.

He further urges all MMDAs to go the extra mile to enforce laws on open defecation and ensure availability of household toilets in their areas of jurisdiction.

According to him, MMDAs must enforce their bye-laws to complement all the efforts in ensuring clean, safe and healthy communities in Ghana.

The Deputy Minister said only 15% of Ghanaians have access to improved toilets and access to toilets has just increased by 9 percentage points in the last 25 years.

He added that about 35% of urban dwellers in Ghana patronise public toilets and whooping 19% of our population defecate in the open.

“We need to take drastic measures such as strict enforcement of national and local bye-laws on sanitation and I urge the general public to stand up against people who indulge in such an unacceptable behaviour. This will go a long way to address this decade old problem,” Mr. Gyato stated.

He said this at the commemoration of 2018 World Toilet Day held in Mantse Agbona at James Town, Accra under the theme, “When Nature Calls.”

Mr. Gyato said the ministry has observed with grave concerned, the increase in poor inherent attitude of a greater number of the citizenry towards sanitation and hygiene.

He indicated that the seeming attitude of the citizens would certainly have adverse effect on our health as a people especially children which require urgent attention by all in dealing it.

“In this age and time a good proportion of our people still defecate in the open and coupled with the perennial floods in our cities and towns during rains, which wash faeces and other waste into our water bodies and living environment,” the sector minister stated.

Mr. Gyato noted that sanitation is a matter of dignity, equality, and safety, and crucial to improving the health and wellbeing of one-third of the world's population, who lack access to this important and basic service.

“As a people, our lives revolve around toilets directly or indirectly and we have to take issues of toilets serious. Sanitation has a number of good benefits but lacks the needed glamour to ensure everyone living and working in Ghana has access,” he opined.

According to him, emerging evidence suggests that a country's reputation of poor environment can affect the earning power of foreign currencies, and hence hinder economic growth.

He stressed that poor sanitation can impact on foreign tourist choosing Ghana as their holiday destination─ it can affect business and play an influential role in where foreign businessmen and women invest their money.

Mr. Gyato indicated that sanitation plays an influential role in attracting foreign investors to set up their businesses and spend their money in Ghana.

“So to be able to harness the benefits of our stable economy, we need to stop open defecation and stop it now,” he stated.

The sector minister emphasized that Government need to create jobs for the teeming unemployed youth through innovate sanitation businesses and private sector participation.

According to him, the ministry has taken steps in rolling out ‘One Household One Toilet’ programme to increase access to toilets.