Ghana Scouts, India High Commission hold beach cleanup at Ananse Beach

The Ghana Scout Association (GSA), the High Commission of India in Ghana and other partners have held a beach cleanup exercise at Ananse Beach in Teshie-Nungua to mark World Cleanup Day 2026.

The exercise, held on Saturday, September 19, 2026, brought together Scouts, diplomats and community members to remove plastic bottles, food wrappers and other waste from the shoreline.

Other partners involved included Mayekoo and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO).

India’s High Commissioner to Ghana, Surinder Bhagat, said the cleanup was intended to promote public responsibility for maintaining clean surroundings.

He linked the exercise to India’s Swachh Bharat campaign and Swachhata Hi Seva, which promotes cleanliness as a form of service.

“We are here and we are doing our small bit to clean up the beaches here, to make our contribution to the society in which we live and spread the message of cleanliness,” he said.

Bhagat said keeping public spaces clean was not only about preventing disease but also about showing respect for other members of society.

“When we clean up the beaches, when we clean up the public spaces, when we clean up our schools, neighbourhoods, it is not that we are just preventing diseases, we are also showing respect to our fellow citizens,” he said.

Chief Commissioner of the Ghana Scout Association, Hilary Yaw Awusie, said the organisation was using its programmes to encourage young people to take greater responsibility for the environment.

He said the GSA works with young people between the ages of six and 26, with discipline, service and responsibility forming part of its scouting programme.

Awusie said the Association had previously engaged young people in environmental activities through its Champions for Nature programme, including a beach cleanup at Chorkor Chimuena in Accra.

He said the Scouts would continue to engage communities on sanitation and environmental issues beyond World Cleanup Day.

According to him, market centres and other areas where waste is frequently generated would be among the places targeted for future cleanup and sensitisation activities.

He urged young people to take responsibility for keeping public spaces clean by avoiding littering and picking up waste where necessary.

The beach cleanup formed part of activities to mark World Cleanup Day, an initiative that seeks to mobilise communities around the world to address waste and environmental pollution.