Zoomlion, AMA clean Agbogbloshie

Waste management giant, Zoomlion Ghana Limited, has joined forces with the ministry of sanitation and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) to undertake a massive clean-up and public education exercise at the Agbogbloshie market, Accra.

The exercise was aimed at ridding the market space of filth. The waste management also used the opportunity to sensitise patrons on the need to keep the market clean.

The Agbogbloshie and Kokomba markets in Accra have been noted for bad sanitary practices as some traders display their wares on the bare floor with drains choked with filth.

The Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Madam Cecilia Abena Dapaah, with her team and the AMA toured the Agbogbloshie market to engage traders to desist from any unhygienic practices as the health of patrons of the market was at risk.

She said the market served as a major food basket for most residents in and around Accra including restaurants.

The minister lamented the disposal of solid waste into drains which, she described, as unacceptable, stressing that, that was the frequent cause of disease outbreaks such as cholera.

“As market women, there is the need to pay attention to food preparation, handling, storage and display to keep us healthy,” she advised.

The Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Mr Mohammed Adjei Sowah, who was with the minister to inspect the sanitary conditions of the market, told the market women to be prepared to help the government achieve the clean city agenda since cleanliness was a shared responsibility.

The Accra Zonal Manager of Zoomlion, Ernest Morgan Acquah, who was at the market together with top management of Zoomlion, explained that the company provided personnel, logistics and other resources to support the ministry undertake the exercise.

He said the company was committed to helping the President achieve the agenda of making Accra the cleanest city in the sub-region, and stressed the need for residents to develop a good culture of keeping waste into waste bins for onward collection.

The traders also pleaded for refuse containers to be stationed at vantage points to help them easily dispose of refuse into them and help prevent the indiscriminate dumping of waste at unauthorised places.