The 1000m3 plant is a joint project between Ghana and Hungary and will be executed by Sewerage systems Ghana, a subsidiary of the Jospong Group and Pureco Limited, a Hungarian water resource technology engineering firm.

The project, which is a €13 million facility would be based on a robust Hungarian technology to be provided by Pureco Limited, and will also have the capacity to turn waste water into compost for agricultural use.

The project, which is being funded by the Hungarian Exim Bank and Jospong Group, is expected to be completed next year. At a colourful event to break the grounds for the construction of the plant at Adegya, near Kumasi, the Executive Chairman of Jospong Group, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong expressed his appreciation to the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II for his dedication to the plant’s development by releasing 130 acres of land for the construction of the facility and other related projects.

He said the plant, which will be managed by Sewerage Systems Ghana Limited, will serve as a research centre for the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to undertake research activities for innovations in waste water treatment.

Dr Agyepong revealed that feasibility studies had been conducted to construct similar plants in Takoradi, Tamale and Tema.  The Ambassador of Hungary to Ghana, Adreas Szabo expressed delight for the partnership, describing it as the first of its kind for a Hungarian company to sign a contract with a Ghanaian company to undertake such a huge project.

The Deputy State Secretary for export development of Hungary’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Isvan Joo, commended the two parties for the partnership, saying that, it was the first waste water treatment plant to be constructed in sub-saharan African.

Mr Samuel Atta Akyea, the Minister of Works and Housing, commended the Jospong Group for its vision. He conferred the title “etiri a eso dae pa” which means “a head that dreams great dreams”, on the Group, adding that Ghana must celebrate people like Dr Agyepong.

Mr Michael Gyato, the Deputy Minister of Sanitation said, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo led government, since assuming office, had taken steps to prioritize environmental sanitation by establishing the Ministry of sanitation to ensure that Ghana becomes a clean nation.

He said government was keen on achieving the Sustainable Development Goal on sanitation, hence the need to bridge the huge infrastructural gap that exist in liquid waste treatment to help  stop open defecation. Nana Baffuor Agyei Fosu Twitwiakwa II, Ananta Hene and Representative of the Asantehene, who chaired the ceremony said it was the hope of the Otumfuo that ventures like this will make Kumasi the real garden city and return it to its former glory.

He commended the Jospong Group for the visionary innovation, adding that, “the Asanteman Council will continue to support such ventures to realise the dreams of our forefathers”. Others present at the ceremony were Mr Osei Mensah, the Ashanti Regional Minister, Members of Parliament, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives, Chiefs and Representatives from the Zongo Communities.

The Executive Chairman of the Jospong group, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong and the Chief Executive Officer of Pureco, Mr. Balint Horvath signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in November, 2017, for the construction and installation of sewerage and waste water plants in Kumasi.