Mr Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development on Friday said Government in her National Development blue print has prioritized sanitation as a key area of action in the Ghana's Shared Growth Development Agenda.
He said the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD) has also put in place a number of frameworks in sanitation service delivery, such as the Environmental Sanitation Strategy Action Plan, (ESSPA) at both national and district levels, to speed up delivery of environmental sanitation service in the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies.
Mr Ampofo made this known at the launch and inauguration of the National Sanitation Task Force (NSTF) in Accra.
Mr Ampofo, who is also the Chairman of the NSTF, said Government is committed to the implementation of these critical areas of environmental sanitation frameworks.
He said poor environmental sanitation accounts for 70 per cent of outpatient diseases of hospitals and other health facilities in the country.
He said environmental sanitation was a public good and therefore has implications for public health, social and economic development of any nation, adding, "There is the need for collective action to address the current poor state of sanitation in the country.
Mr Ampofo also noted that delivery of environmental sanitation service was capital intensive and therefore requires adequate funding and investment for sustainability, adding that, "Government is aware of the challenges in sanitation and will do all it can to adequately support the MMDAs to carry out their mandate in providing sanitation services."
He said improving sanitation was certainly the surest way to improve the health, social and economic developments of the country.
Mr Ampofo said since the launch of the National Sanitation Programme at Agbogboloshie, on September 12, this year, by President John Dramani Mahama, recruitment of the NSTF has been carried out in all ten regions of the country.
He said all regions have submitted a list of workers to the MLGRD and that those workers were oriented and deployed appropriately.
Mr Ampofo said request for logistics from the MMDAs has been received and that the MLGRD has carried out distributions of the various logistics to all MMDAs in the country.
He said public education on health was ongoing in both the print and electronic media in the country, in collaboration with the public health units in all the MMDAs.