Ghana waste management and sanitation challenges

Ghanaian officials have highlighted critical environmental and sanitation challenges facing the nation, focusing on waste management infrastructure and large-scale accumulation.

Dr. Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, the minister-designate for Environment, Science and Technology, advocated for the mandatory use of non-permeable liners at all national landfill sites. She argued these liners are an “absolute necessity” to prevent toxic leachate from contaminating groundwater. Her proposed strategy also includes household waste segregation and the use of technologies like pyrolysis to convert plastic into fuel.

Concurrently, Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mahama Ayariga, addressed the massive waste accumulation at Agbogbloshie, which he described as being as high as a 10-storey building. He noted the environmental risks this poses to nearby institutions such as the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. In response, President John Dramani Mahama has directed several ministries to coordinate a cleanup plan involving the Military Engineering Regiment and the use of a landfill site along the Nsawam Road.