The first National Sanitation Day (NSD) exercise for 2026 will take place throughout the city on Saturday, January 10, 2026, beginning at 6:00 a.m. and lasting until the cleanup is finished, according to the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA).
The exercise was originally planned for Saturday, January 3, 2026, but it was postponed to accommodate Christmas and New Year’s trading activities in Accra’s Central Business District (CBD), according to a statement released by the Assembly on Wednesday.
The first NSD of the year, according to the AMA, is important and urgent since it follows a period of increasing economic activity, trash production, and strain on the city’s sanitation infrastructure.
According to the statement, in accordance with a presidential directive and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (Communal Labour) Bye-Laws, 2017, enacted under Section 181 of the Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936), all shops, markets, and business premises were required to remain closed from 6:00 a.m. until the exercise was completed to allow full public participation in communal labour.
The Assembly stated that the day’s cleanliness activities will include desilting and cleaning sewers, sweeping streets and lanes, removing unlawful banners and posters, and doing general clean-up operations in markets, lorry parks, and other public spaces.
The operation would cover all electoral areas, communities, markets, and the CBD, according to a statement signed by Mr. Gilbert Nii Ankrah, Head of Public Affairs at the AMA. Intense work is scheduled at a few key locations, such as the Central Business District, Agbogbloshie Market and its environs, and the Cable and Wireless enclave in Okaikoi South.
The Sanitation Taskforce, sweepers, janitors, and Public Health Officers, also referred to as “Sama-Sama,” will be deployed throughout all sub-metros by the AMA, along with the logistics and equipment required to enable desilting, refuse collection, and safe disposal of waste at designated locations.
The Assembly reminded the public that disobeying the sanitation directive or refusing to engage in communal labour is illegal and can result in a fine of up to 100 penalty units, imprisonment for a minimum of 30 days and a maximum of six months, or both. It also stated that persistent offenders may face additional daily penalties.
Residents, traders, transport operators, market women, shop owners, landlords, tenants, and other business entities were urged by the AMA to participate in the exercise by cleaning their immediate surroundings, making sure the drains in front of their properties are properly desilted, maintaining clean markets, truck parks, beaches, and business frontages, and working with AMA officers and the Sanitation Taskforce throughout the exercise.
Press Release Below:
Source: newsthemegh.com