WaterAid Ghana and its partners, Akuapem Community Development Programme (ACDEP) in its quest to promote Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health (WASH) for the promotion of public health as well as reducing the outbreak of communicable and other water related diseases in Akuapem North Municipality have organized a one day workshop at Akropong-Akuapem.

In his welcome address Mr. Krampah the Director of ACDEP said the NGO group has been liaising with other stakeholders such as the Health Directorate, Environmental Health Department, Water and Sanitation to help solve sanitation related issues in the municipality.

He also mentioned that his group had provided a number of boreholes to some communities in the area and had succeeded in inculcating the habit of washing hands frequently after using the toilet, arriving home from town or work or from the funeral grounds in some of the communities within the municipality.

He spoke with pride as he mentioned that in Konko village for in instance, the community had designed the hanging water bottle device to be washing their hands in every household. He called on the Municipal Assembly to commit a fraction of its funds in combating filth and in the area of providing good drinking water to the people.

Dr. S. Anie a Medical Practitioner at the Korle-bu Teaching Hospital and a resource person said in Ghana, about 10,000 infants die by the age of 5 years each year from diarrheoa due to poor sanitation and hygiene. Also in Ghana, 6 out of the top 10 diseases such as Malaria, Skin diseases and ulcers, diarrhoeal diseases, acute eye infections, intestine worms and anaemia were WASH-related.

She also explained that Neglected Tropical Diseases such as trachoma, schistosomiasis and other infections affects over 1 billion people in the world and are linked to sanitation as they were transmitted by faecal contamination and poor hygiene and contaminated water.

Dr. Anie called on all stakeholders to pitch their forces together in order to propagate the message of WASH-Health in homes, schools, churches and the communities at large. She called on the Municipal Assembly to Support WaterAid Ghana and ACDEP by committing at least 5 per cent of its funds to WASH-Health programme. “It is about time we do away with superstitious beliefs and report the least reaction in our bodies to any health facility for quick assistance before it goes out of hand,” She said.

Source: ISD (Samuel Y. Kumah)