President John Dramani Mahama has directed the immediate reopening of six transfer stations that have remained unused for more than nine years.
The move is to ensure proper disposal of refuse collected during the nationwide clean-up exercise and prevent waste from being washed back into drains during rainfall.
The directive follows an appeal from the Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim, , who called for designated dumping points to manage the large volumes of waste removed from drainage channels during the exercise.
Speaking on Saturday, July 11, during the second day of the National General Cleaning Exercise, President Mahama said the decision was necessary to address a recurring challenge where waste cleared from drains is left by the roadside and later swept back into the drainage system.
“We’ve had six transfer stations that were built more than nine years ago. Unfortunately, they were not put into operation. So we’ve asked the contractor to open the transfer stations so that the waste operators can take the garbage there,” President Mahama said.
He explained that the arrangement will allow smaller waste trucks, including those operated by tricycle waste collectors, to deposit refuse at the transfer stations, from where larger trucks will transport the waste to final disposal sites.
The President added that the move will ease the challenges faced by waste collectors who have in recent weeks complained about the lack of designated dumping sites, resulting in refuse accumulating in several parts of the capital.
He urged waste operators participating in the clean-up exercise to use the nearest transfer station instead of travelling all the way to Amasaman.
President Mahama also thanked residents, sanitation workers, and local authorities for their participation in the national clean-up exercise, stressing that restoring Accra’s sanitation situation requires collective effort.
“Ghana is a resilient country, Accra is a resilient city, and we will bounce back better than before,” he said.