The Government is preparing a national emergency operation to clear the huge waste heap at Agbogbloshie in Accra.
The operation is expected to involve the military, government agencies, contractors and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, with equipment mobilised from across the country.
Mr Mahama Ayariga, Minister of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, announced the plan at the launch of the Second Ecumenical Convention of the Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) in Accra.
The convention was held on the theme: “United in Christ, Transforming Society through Creation Care.”
Mr Ayariga stated that if clearing the Agbogbloshie waste heap was the only major achievement he could record as Minister, he would dedicate himself to ensuring that every bit of the waste was removed from the area.
He said President John Mahama had directed him, the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Roads and Highways and the Minister of Defence to develop a plan to remove the waste heap.
Alao, the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) had subsequently assigned the military engineering regiment to lead the operation.
Mr Ayariga said he had visited Agbogbloshie three times within his first week in office, including climbing the huge waste heap, which he estimated to be about 10 storeys high.
He said the heap, located close to major churches, the National Mosque, a premier tertiary hospital and a major market, had been described by environmental watchdogs and international media as one of the most polluted areas both in Africa and the world.
The Minister said he, together with a military officer designated by the CDS, had inspected a landfill site off the Nsawam Road where the waste would be deposited.
He said a technical team, including personnel from the Jospong Group and other technical experts, had used surveyors, drones and artificial intelligence to determine the volume of waste at Agbogbloshie.
Mr Ayariga said the Minister of Roads and Highways was engaging government contractors, some of whom had expressed willingness to support the operation at no cost by providing tipper trucks, dump trucks, excavators, dozers and other equipment.
He said the government had about 200 dump trucks, 100 loaders, about 50 low-bed trucks and nearly 50 dozers, while the contractors could potentially add another 200 dump trucks to the operation.
Mr Ayariga said the Ministry had also written to the regions and districts, directing them to treat the exercise as a national emergency and make available equipment, together with the drivers and operators, for deployment to Accra.
He said President Mahama, who was expected to return to the country the following day, would determine when the operation would commence.
The Minister said the route from Agbogbloshie to the disposal site at Nsawam was a dual carriageway, which would make it possible for the government to allow traffic to use one side and dedicate the other side to trucks transporting the waste.
He said the operation could run around the clock, adding that he would advocate for it to take place during both the day and night because the inconvenience caused by the operation would demonstrate the seriousness of the problem and help discourage people from recreating such waste heaps.
Mr Ayariga called for deliberate action to improve environmental cleanliness, including refraining from littering, with shopkeepers taking responsibility for pavements around their businesses and parents teaching children to care for the environment.
He said he would join the Council’s mindset-transformation campaign in basic and secondary schools and universities.
Mr Ayariga also pledged his Ministry’s support for the Christian Council as it prepared to celebrate its centenary in 2029 and linked the collaboration to President Mahama’s Resetting Agenda.
Rev Dr Cyril Fayose, General Secretary of the CCG, described the convention’s theme as both theological and prophetic, saying unity must move beyond fellowship into action, beyond the sanctuary into society and beyond words into transformation.
He cited Genesis 2:15 and Psalm 24:1 to explain that creation care was a biblical mandate and sacred responsibility, rather than a fashionable agenda.
Rev Dr Fayose said Ghana was facing an environmental crisis, with rivers and streams under threat, forests and lands being degraded and communities struggling with sanitation and waste-management problems.
He said those challenges had implications for public health, livelihoods and the future of the country.
Rev Dr Fayose said the Church could not look away or stand aside, and noted that the CCG had strengthened its environmental-care and cleanliness programme based on the conviction that keeping the environment clean was everyone’s responsibility.
He said the Council wanted to move from occasional environmental activities to a sustained culture of environmental stewardship in congregations, schools, institutions, homes and communities.
Rev Dr Fayose said the CCG would work with government and public institutions, civil society, youth organisations and other stakeholders to advance environmental protection, responsible enterprise and community wellbeing.
He said the youth must be empowered to become agents of transformation, enterprise and responsible citizenship, while financial systems should support responsible enterprise and community wellbeing.
Rev Dr Fayose said environmental degradation was also a public-health concern and called for collective action to address it.
GNA
