Feature: How Doctors In Ghana Are Leading The Fight Against Household Air Pollution
Grace Antwi would prepare dinner every evening as the sun began to fade over her neighborhood in Pokuase, Accra. Antwi says, "I didn't think anything was wrong. That's how we have always cooked." Doctors diagnosed her daughter with a lower respiratory tract infection and asked, "What fuel did she cook with?"
As many as 30 percent of Ghana's 8.3 million households rely on charcoal for cooking, while roughly half of households still depend on firewood according to the Ghana Statistical Service. More than 32,000 deaths in Ghana were linked to air pollution in 2023, according to the State of Global Air report. Antwi replaced her charcoal stove with a smaller gas stove.
Antwi now tries to keep her daughter away from the cooking area and makes sure the space is more open when preparing meals. Antwi says, "When people come to buy things from my shop, sometimes we talk about it. I tell them what happened to my daughter. I tell them the smoke is not good for children."
Quick Summary
In Ghana, doctors are on the frontlines of an unexpected battle- fighting household air pollution. Many families rely on traditional cooking methods, but health experts are starting to connect the dots between these practices and serious illnesses- especially in children.
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