Ghana is on auto-pilot when it comes to sanitation - Kofi Bentil

Kofi Bentil, Senior lawyer and Vice President of IMANI Africa, criticized Ghana's approach to sanitation management, describing it as reactive and lacking long-term planning, while urging the government to pursue sustainable solutions instead of temporary interventions. Speaking on JoyNews' Newsfile, Mr. Bentil argued that the country's sanitation challenges continue to be addressed without a clear strategic direction, despite recurring floods and persistent waste management problems, particularly in the capital. He stated, "When it comes to sanitation, Ghana is on auto-pilot; nobody is thinking about a proper solution to our sanitation problems."

According to Mr. Bentil, successive efforts to improve sanitation have failed to address the structural causes of poor waste management, leaving the country trapped in a cycle of flooding, emergency clean-up exercises, and environmental degradation. He remarked, "When it comes to sanitation, Ghana is on auto-pilot. What will be, will be." Mr. Bentil also expressed concern over what he witnessed during a recent clean-up exercise in parts of Accra following heavy rains, recounting travelling to work on Friday, July 10, and observing confrontational scenes in Accra's Central Business District, where traders and members of the public were allegedly being compelled to participate in sanitation activities. He said, "I went to work and I was very worried when I saw people almost brutalising people who were working." Some traders informed officials that the designated clean-up exercise was intended for government agencies and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs).