Addressing plastic menace: Apostle Nyamekye urges government to consider innovative solutions

The Chairman of the Church of Pentecost (COP), Apostle Eric Kwabena Nyamekye, has reiterated the need for the government to reconsider ways to discourage the use of plastics in the country.

He said plastic waste management is a huge challenge, and the government needs to find innovative solutions to solve it.

The Chairman was speaking to journalists during the COP National Environmental Care Campaign clean-up exercise in Accra on Saturday, March 16, 2024.

He added that plastic waste management is an employment opportunity and a source of income, so many people should be encouraged to explore and invest in plastic waste collection and recycling.

"Let's see if some business entrepreneurs will come onboard and take charge of the plastics so that others will collect them at a fee, and by so doing, they will be helping in the recycling process and at the same time keeping the streets and environment clean," he said.

Explaining the rationale behind the campaign, he said, "It is not good for people to make and live in filth, so we do this to bring some education for Ghanaians and church members to keep a clean environment."

He observed that the campaign is gaining traction as the amount of filth collected is much less than in previous years, suggesting that people are changing their behaviour and desisting from dumping refuse in drains.

"I think the campaign is helping because those days we used to collect much more rubbish than we have seen today," he remarked.

Advising the general public, Apostle Nyamekye stressed that cleanliness is next to godliness, and when people refuse to keep a clean environment, it becomes a challenge to all as the filth will breed mosquitoes, sickness, and sometimes premature deaths.

"We are praying that what we are doing will be a lesson to more people so that we don't litter around so we can live a healthier life," he emphasized.

The National Environmental Care Campaign, which started in 2019, has gathered momentum, and other African nations have joined the movement.

This year, Madagascar, Senegal, and some West African nations where COP is present embarked on a similar clean-up exercise, taking cue from Ghana.

"The filth here is the same everywhere, so the COP is doing this globally, and this year Madagascar, Senegal, and other African countries where we are present also embarked on a similar exercise," he stated.

He commended Zoomlion for its support over the years in helping the church achieve such remarkable results.

The Communications and Corporate Affairs Director of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, Madam Emma Adwoa Appiaa Osei-Duah, explained that Zoomlion as a strategic partner to the campaign, supported the exercise with logistics and machinery such as hand gloves, boots, wheelbarrows waste collection trucks, etc.

She called on the general public to practice source separation, where organic waste is separated from inorganic waste at home before being transferred to waste collection points.

She mentioned that Zoomlion has also brought on board Namaco, a material recovery company that will buy the segregated waste, especially the plastic waste, and urged Ghanaians to take advantage of the opportunity.

"In your home, make sure you separate the papers, plastics, and bottles from the organic waste and engage Namaco, and they will come for it," she stated.

The annual Environmental Care Campaign of the Church of Pentecost is a day set aside for members of the church to clean the environment.