According to the organisation, ensuring access to decent WASH and toilet facilities at all levels, including healthcare and educational institutions, households and public places within communities would encourage positive behaviour and help end open defecation.

Ms Ewurabena Yanyi-Akofur, Country Director, WaterAid Ghana, who made the call, said WASH had the potential to influence the attainment of all the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related to health and education, and underscored the need to prioritise the sector.

The Country Director made the appeal in a speech read on her behalf, at separate durbars in the Upper East Region as part of activities marking this year's World Toilet Day, held on the theme "Toilet: a place for peace".

It was organised under the auspices of the five-year Sexual Health and Reproductive Education (SHARE) project, being implemented by a consortium led by Right to Play and supported by Forum for African Educationalists Ghana, WaterAid Ghana and FHI360 and funded by the Global Affairs Canada.

The durbars were held concurrently at the operational areas of the project namely the Kassena-Nankana and Builsa North Municipalities, and the Bongo and Kassena-Nankana West Districts.

The project aims to advance gender equality by providing access to age-appropriate sexual and reproductive education and gender responsive care for young people especially girls and young women.

The Country Director indicated huge resources were being lost annually to health-related issues due to bad sanitation practices and underscored the urgent need for all people to have access to safe sanitation practices to promote dignity, health, and harmony in the communities.

"A clean and safe toilet is not just a facility; it is a symbol of respect, equity, and social cohesion", she said.

"At WaterAid Ghana, we believe that everyone deserves access to sustainable sanitation services, regardless of age, gender, or ability.
This is why we are committed to working with communities, government stakeholders, and partners to ensure that no one is left behind".

Ms Fauzia Aliu, Advocacy, Campaigns, and Inclusive Manager, WaterAid Ghana, indicated that open defecation continued to be a major concern in Ghana, especially in the rural communities, adding that most of the diseases people suffered were preventable if sanitation practices were taken seriously.

She appealed to the government, especially the district assemblies, to prioritise the provision of WASH facilities to schools and health facilities to ensure that all people, including women, girls and children had access to sustainable WASH services.

"Let us remember that sanitation is not just a health issue, thus, it is a foundation for peace and progress, by investing in sanitation, we invest in dignity, safety, and opportunity for everyone", she added.

Mr Stephen Bordotsiah, the Acting Builsa North Municipal Director of the Ghana Health Service, said the Builsa North Municipality had made significant progress at ending open defecation since 2015, adding that "by 2020, we certified 41 communities as ODF, covering over 1,035 households and benefitting a population of 7,342 individuals.

"However, we are also mindful that several of these communities have relapsed into open defecation, which reintroduces risks such as cholera, typhoid, dysentery, polio and so on", he added.

Mr Cabral Bantiu Vwawojei, the Acting Kassena-Nankana Municipal Director of the Ghana Health Service, called for increased advocacy and education from all stakeholders to push for the mainstreaming of WASH facilities in all new health and educational facilities.