Kumasi,(Ashanti Region) 23 Oct.

The government, through the support of the world bank, has earmarked 27 million dollars towards the implementation of the urban environmental sanitation project for the Kumasi metropolis. The main components of the project are the development of disposal facilities, drainage of the Subin River, upgrading of low income urban areas, particularly Aboabo and Anloga, as well as capacity building. Mr. Anthony Mensah, an engineer at the waste management department of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) announced this at a three-day seminar for reporters of the Ghana News Agency. He was speaking on " sanitation and waste management in Kumasi". The seminar which is on the theme ''Reporting the Environment'', is being attended by 30 participants. It is sponsored by PACIPE, a non- governmental organisation that has been providing regional technical assistance for awareness and information on the protection of the environment . According to Mr. Mensah close to 600 tons of household waste is generated in Kumasi daily, adding that with the current resources at the disposal of the KMA, it is able to collect and dispose of 360 tons of the refuse representing 60 percent of the total daily generation. He explained that the KMA currently spends about 1.5 billion cedis of its annual budget on sanitation and solid waste management.