Hon. Michael Kpakpo Allotey, the mayor of Accra, praised the return of National Sanitation Day (NSD) and called it “timely and crucial” for the city’s ongoing Reset Accra initiative.
He claims that the policy is a perfect fit with the 24-Hour Clean Accra Initiative of the AMA.
Shortly after Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim (MP), Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy, and Religious Affairs, gave a press briefing at the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) on Wednesday to formally announce the reintroduction of the National Sanitation Day (NSD) as part of the government’s renewed “Clean Up Ghana Agenda,” the Mayor praised the initiative.
“We have already begun intensifying decongestion, drain desilting, and daily waste collection. The President’s relaunch of NSD gives us the national backing to enforce discipline across markets, transport terminals, and neighbourhoods. My message to residents is simple: let’s work together, respect the red line policy, and keep Accra clean,” he said.
He promised that in order to guarantee adherence to the daily cleanliness instruction, AMA would work with stakeholders, assign additional sanitation task forces, and make use of its new fast reaction team.
In his official announcement of the National Sanitation Day (NSD) reintroduction, Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim (MP), Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy, and Religious Affairs, instructed all MMDAs to make sure that all public areas, ceremonial streets, and obvious nuisances within their jurisdictions are cleared by 8:00 a.m. every day beginning September 4, 2025.
He emphasized that cleaning markets, truck parks, schools, and ceremonial routes, as well as desilting drains and removing waste heaps, must be a top priority for assemblies.
In addition to mobilizing environmental health officers, waste management contractors, and community volunteers, Assemblies were required to submit monthly sanitation reports to their Regional Coordinating Councils for subsequent submission to the Ministry in order to maintain compliance, he said.
The NSD, which was originally introduced in 2014, demonstrated that community transformation was possible through collective action, he noted, although he acknowledged that interest in the exercise had waned over time.
“The re-introduction of the NSD is therefore a renewed social contract between government and citizens, anchored on accountability, enforcement, and sustainability,” he stated.
He revealed that 80% of the District Assemblies Common Fund had been made available to assist sanitation initiatives, eliminating the idea of lack of funds as a justification for poor performance.
He cautioned, “Sanitation is now a key performance indicator for all MMDCEs. Your performance as Chief Executive will be judged directly on your results in cleanliness.”
The Minister announced the creation of a single dashboard to track citizen reports in real time, as well as a dedicated sanitation hotline.
Source: newsthemegh.com