The Parliamentary Select Committee on Sanitation and Water Resources has advocated a dedicated funding source to tackle the persistent sanitation challenges, ensuring reliable payments to private sector service providers.
The Committee’s Chairman, John Kwabena Oti Bless, emphasised that a permanent funding mechanism was essential because “waste generation is a daily problem.”
He added that with a dedicated funding source, the government would be able to pay service providers in the sanitation sector promptly, including clearing its outstanding debts to Zoomlion Ghana Limited.
Mr Oti Bless made the comments after leading a tour of Zoomlion’s waste treatment facilities in Tamale, including the Integrated Recycling and Compost Plant (IRECOP), Wastewater Treatment Plant and Medical Waste Services Limited, all located on the same premises at Gbalahi on Wednesday, September 17.
“Across the world, there is always a funding mechanism for sanitation. Without funding, how do you pay service providers? That is the challenge we face as a country, and all stakeholders, including the media, must work together on this,” he stated.
He praised Zoomlion’s operations in the Northern Region, stating that the sanitation situation would be worse without the availability of the company’s facilities and men.
Against this background, he urged the government to provide incentives for Ghanaian businesses that invest in impactful environmental projects, noting that the government cannot handle the challenges alone.
“It’s a very important facility. We’ve learned they are now in talks with Jospong to set up a similar facility in Burkina Faso. That shows how crucial this is,” he said, referencing a recent visit by a Burkinabé delegation to a Zoomlion plant in Kumasi.
He reiterated that sanitation is primarily private-sector driven and called for stronger collaboration between the government and companies.
He also highlighted the need for a public attitudinal shift, urging citizens to stop indiscriminate dumping and use the provided waste bins.
The tour included Ranking Member Kofi Ahenkorah Marfo and members Bismark Nyarko Tetteh, Joseph Azumah, and Fatahiya Abdul Aziz.
