Government must declare contract agreement with

Government must declare contract agreement with accra compost and recycling plant to the public

Of late, waste has engulfed the city of Accra and has become an albatross on the neck of Government, posing health threat to the people of Ghana, especially those living in the Accra Metropolitan Areas. This is because Government has failed to pay the Accra Compost and Recycling Plant (ACARP), an amount of ¢20million cedis owed it. Currently there is a major problem with identification and acquisition of landfills for dumping of waste and it is expected that the plant will eventually eliminate the need for land fill dump sites.

ACARP is an integrated waste processing and recycling company established to collect, sort, process and recycle solid and liquid waste and produce organic manure for agronomic purposes in Ghana and West Africa. The plant is also expected to address the problem of plastic waste through sorting, collection and recycling of such waste.

The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development represented government in the signing of the contract. Government’s part of the contract was to bear the cost of tipping the waste that was received and processed at the plant.

Public Action Against Corruption and Abuse (PAACA) would like to state that the contract between the government of Ghana and Accra Compost and Recycling plant (ACARP) operated by Zoomlion must be looked at again. This is because the ACARP uses the waste it collects to produce manure for agronomic purposes and also manufacture plastics, fertilizers and makes huge profit by selling their products back to the Government. These waste serves as raw material for the company and it supposed to buy from government and not otherwise. One typical example is the “scavengers” who collect plastic refuse to sell to plastic companies. Zoomlion have distributed containers in some parts of Accra if not most parts of Accra and collects monies from residences every month. These monies are used to run the company and yet the company collects money from government for recycling waste which serves as raw material to the company.

PAACA would also like to know from the government, what has happed to the earlier arrangements to convert waste it collects into producing more electricity, since Ghana is now facing power crisis. What are the District and Municipal Assemblies doing to reduce waste in our communities, at the time many District Assemblies have been created? Is it a situation whereby government of Ghana lacks the competence to manage waste in Ghana?

The Accra Compost and Recycling plant was set up through a Public –Private Partnership between Zoomlion Ghana Limited and the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development. Now, how much is government supposed to pay Zoomlion and from which period has the government owed Zoomlion?

By this statement, we are asking government to publish the contract signed with the Accra Compost and Recycling plant (ACARP) to the public so that we can ascertain whether the contract is value for money. Over the period Ghanaians have been short-changed in so called contracts which has proved to be dubious and full of corruption which include SUBA, GYEEDA, ASONGTABA SADA just to mention a few.

Thank You!

Signed:

Joseph Otoo (Secretary) - 0207347137

Kenneth Kuranchie (leading member) - 0244206890

Ernest Owusu Bempah-(leading Member) - 0244206890