Corporate bodies and state institutions joined the two-day National General Cleaning Exercise declared by President John Dramani Mahama in response to sanitation challenges exposed by the June 29 floods across the country.
The exercise, held on the theme: “Our Actions, Our Future: Cleaning Ghana after the Floods”, formed part of the President's Sanitation Reset Agenda, which calls on Ghanaians and heads of institutions to take an active role in keeping the environment clean.
MIIF
For instance, the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) defied an early morning downpour on Saturday to lead a more than three-hour clean-up exercise in selected communities within the La Dade-Kotopon Municipal Assembly (LaDKMA).
Dr Alhassan Iddrisu (2nd from left), Government Statistician, being assisted by some staff of the service to remove filth from a gutter
The exercise, which was led by MIIF Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Justina Nelson, began near the Togo Embassy area and continued through the American Embassy enclave, with staff clearing choked drains, cutting overgrown vegetation, and removing waste along major streets.
MIIF also donated wheelbarrows, machetes, rakes, shovels and brooms to the Assembly to support its sanitation work.
Mrs Nelson described the exercise as successful, saying it reflected the Fund's Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) policy and the President's Reset agenda.
She thanked her team and LaDKMA for the collaboration and called for a broader shift in public attitudes towards sanitation, pledging to make the exercise a regular activity.
The Municipal Environmental Health Officer, Isaac Okumtey Anim, commended MIIF staff for their participation and welcomed the donated equipment, saying the Assembly needed more of such support to sustain its sanitation drive.
BPA
Also, staff of the Bui Power Authority (BPA) joined the nationwide exercise last Friday, focusing on the Airport Residential Area in Accra, where the entity's head office is located, and its operational communities within the Bui enclave.
Justina Nelson (left), CEO, MIIF, handing over the equipment and items used in the cleaning to the La Dade-Kotopon Municipal Assembly for future clean-up exercises
The activities taken by BPA included desilting drains, sweeping and clearing streets, removing refuse, and filling potholes to improve sanitation, safety and accessibility.
The exercise was led by the CEO, Kow Eduakwa Sam, with Deputy CEOs, Directors, and staff taking part.
Mr Sam described environmental sanitation as a shared responsibility and urged all Ghanaians to play their part in keeping communities clean.
VRA
The Volta River Authority (VRA) said it was going to institutionalise regular clean-up exercises across its operational areas, an initiative targeted at promoting a cleaner, healthier country.
Dr Saajida Shiraz, CEO of the Student Loan Trust Fund, leading the team to engage in the National Sanitation Exercise
The CEO of the VRA, Edward Obeng-Kenzo, after leading the company’s teams at various work locations to participate in the clean-up exercise, said environmental sustainability and community well-being had always been part of VRA’s core objective and would thus strengthen and sustain efforts to maintain that.
He commended the staff for their dedication and said their response to the communal work was a demonstration of VRA’s strong commitment to environmental stewardship.
Others
The Government Statistician, Dr Alhassan Iddrisu, also led staff of the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) in a clean-up exercise at the Service's Head Office in the Ministries area, Accra.
The Student Loan Trust Fund (SLTF) also partnered the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) to mobilise students for the exercise.
The CEO of SLTF, Dr Saajida Shiraz, said the organisation was working closely with the Regional Coordinating Council to ensure that students were effectively deployed to areas affected by the floods to help with the exercise.
