Accra, Aug. 6, GNA - A Snapshot of Sanitation in Africa has ranked Ghana the 48th country in Africa with the worst progress in sanitation. The report, which assessed 51 African countries, also ranked Ghana the 14th out of 15 countries in West Africa with poor sanitation record. This means that the country is off track in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGS) on sanitation, targeting the reduction by half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation by 2015.

The country would therefore achieve about 15 per cent reduction by 2015, instead of 53 per cent, should the trend continue. Only 10 per cent has been achieved as at 2006.

Mrs Loretta Roberts, Vice Chairman of the Coalition of NGOs in Water and Sanitation, told newsmen at a press briefing in Accra on Wednesday that the situation was a national crisis, which called for the declaration for a national emergency.

She said the report by the UNICEF/WHO Joint Monitoring Team issued at the AfricanSan+5 International Conference on Sanitation held in Durban, South Africa, last February, also indicated that only 10 per cent of Ghanaians had access to improved toilet facilities. Mrs Roberts expressed regret at the country's poor solid waste management system, saying only 30 per cent of waste was managed properly with the deficit left heaped at improper places.

"Ghana cannot advance to a middle-income status with the present level of deplorable sanitation. We must do all there is to do to avert this deterioration in our national environmental situation," she noted. She therefore called for a national campaign for attitudinal change and the strict enforcement of bye-laws by local authorities to address the problem.

Mrs Roberts also tasked the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment (MLGRDE) to set up a task force as a matter of urgency to discuss and come out with approaches for data collection to help reduce disparities in data on actual coverage of sanitation. She asked government to take a courageous step to ban the use of thin plastics and encourage the use of paper bags and other degradable alternatives, since plastics had remained a major sanitation menace. Mrs Roberts also entreated the media to put the spotlight on sanitation as a national crisis issue.

On toilet facilities in Ghana, Mr Emmanuel Addai, Communication Specialist for the Water and Sanitation Sector Monitoring Platform, said open defecation was still high in the country.

He said the statistics on open defecation reduced marginally from 24 per cent in 1990 to 20 per cent in 2006, indicating that four million people were still practicing it.

"Ghana Statistical Service Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey Report for 2006 has shown that open defecation was most widespread in the Upper East Region with 82 per cent, Upper West with 79 per cent and Northern region with 73 per cent," he added.

Mr. Addai indicated that the use of pan or bucket latrines were also prevalent in the country recording a rate of 0.8 per cent. Commenting on government interventions to improve the situation, Mr Demedeme Naa, Director of Environmental Sanitation of the MLGRDE, said government had sourced funds to provide improved toilet facilities and sanitation in general.

He said the Ministry was also reviewing the Sanitation Policy to respond to current challenges and draft an action plan to ensure its effective implementation. He also noted that considering the cost effectiveness of management of sanitation government would not be able to make sanitation services free.

Mr. Naa also called for attitudinal change and reminded landlords that the provision of toilet facilities in homes was their responsibility and not government. He further appealed to the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to enforce the byelaws. 6 Aug. 08