Veep meets market women

Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has met the executives of the Greater Accra Market Women Association to discuss a number of issues affecting the markets at the Flagstaff House.

The discussions between the market women and Vice President Amissah-Arthur centered on ways by which the women could complement the effort of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) to enhance sanitation and improve the collection of rubbish at the various markets.

Present at the meeting was Mr Julius Debrah, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development and Mr Oko Vanderpuje, Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur stated that the objective of the meeting was to talk to the market women and get their views on how to improve sanitation on a continuous basis at the various markets.

He said he does not want a situation where the rubbish heap is removed and within two or three weeks later the garbage piles up again.

He said it was in that spirit of consultation to find out from them, hence the meeting, since the women would be the most affected, when the situation becomes worse.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur also charged them to ensure the situation does not become a recurring feature.

He urged the market women to ensure good sanitary conditions in the markets so that customers who patronize their goods are not affected by diseases.

He also called for proper arrangement of the markets so that in case of a fire outbreak, the fire tenders can have easy access to the markets.

Mr Julius Debrah, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development stated that the aim of the consultation was to solicit their views on how best they could work together to improve conditions at the markets.

He suggested the provision of small rubbish bins for each trader at the market so that after trading it could be emptied to ensure a clean environment.

Mr Oko Vanderpuje, Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly noted that thirteen markets within the Accra Metropolis had been approved for Public Private Partnership to ensure the renovations of the markets. These markets include Makola, Salaga, Osu and Tuesday Market.