The Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs (MLGCRA) is set to intensify sanitation enforcement nationwide through house-to-house inspections, with residents whose homes fall below basic cleanliness standards facing spot fines in accordance with local by-laws.
The initiative forms part of government efforts to sustain the National Sanitation Day programme and realise the President’s vision of a cleaner Ghana.
Speaking during a monitoring exercise, the Technical Advisor for Sanitation at the Ministry, Mr Michael Forson, said renewed political commitment from the President had injected urgency into the sanitation agenda.
He noted that the sector minister, Mr Ahmed Ibrahim, had demonstrated strong leadership by mobilising national stakeholders and driving the programme forward.
Mr Forson said monitoring this year showed some improvements compared to last year, although lapses were identified in a few assemblies. He said these challenges had been addressed through engagements with affected Mayors, Chief Executives and Environmental Health Officers to maintain momentum.
He disclosed that a sanitation performance scorecard would soon be introduced for Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), with sanitation forming a key component of their assessment.
Despite existing challenges, Mr Forson noted growing participation by voluntary groups in clean-up activities across several municipalities. In Ablekuma North and Okaikwei North, residents and hawkers actively took part in the exercise, expressing satisfaction with working in cleaner environments.
He added that assemblies had the necessary materials to carry out the exercise and announced plans to distribute additional sanitation tools to all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the Greater Accra Region.
“We believe stronger monitoring, enforcement of spot fines, improved accountability and increased community participation will sustain the sanitation drive and promote a cleaner, healthier Ghana,” he said.
In the Ablekuma West Municipality, assembly officials mobilised residents for the exercise. The Municipal Environmental Health Officer, Miss Mabel Frimpong, said the Assembly regularly sensitised the public through mobile vans and community address systems.
She stressed that sanitation was a shared responsibility, noting that some residents continued to rely solely on the Assembly, a situation she said undermined progress.
Miss Frimpong said enforcement had been strengthened through the issuance of letters to residents and institutions, particularly under the “Operation Clean Your Frontage” policy. She urged residents to report illegal dumping, encouraging the public to take photographs of offenders and submit them to the Assembly for action.
