President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has cut the sod for commencing construction of the Sekondi-Takoradi Solid and Liquid Waste Facility, estimated to cost €16million, at Asaakae in the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Assembly (EKMA), Western Region.

The project, which is going to be executed by waste management expert Zoomlion Ghana Limited (ZGL) and its partners – Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources (MSWR), Sewerage Systems Ghana Limited (SSGL), Pureco and Komptech – will serve over two million people in EKMA.

Speaking at a colourful but brief ceremony yesterday, President Akufo-Addo reiterated that the issue of sanitation is very important to his government.

“That is why the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources was set up and mandated to ensure proper sanitation across the country,” he said.

The EKMA solid and liquid waste treatment facilities, he said, are a testimony of the good relations between government and the private sector.

“It is in line with my government’s policy of creating an enabling environment for the private sector to bridge the infrastructure gap,” the president said.

According to President Akufo-Addo, the project when completed will help reduce the high rate of plastic and other solid waste.

“Equally important is the fact that it will provide jobs for the people, potable water and good roads, which will help improve the water and sanitation situation in the municipality,” he said.

He urged the relevant state institutions to ensure that construction of the project is carried out to the right specifications.

To this end, the president commended the Jospong Group of Companies for its partnership with government to improve sanitation in the country.

He again applauded the company, particularly, for helping to fight against the COVID-19 epidemic in the country.

“Indeed, your efforts in the fight against COVID-19 is a patriotic intervention,” he expressed.

The Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Mrs. Cecilia Abena Dapaah, explained that the two waste treatment facilities will help improve and sustain gains made in the Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) space.

She said her ministry over the last three-and-a-half years has enjoyed fruitful relations with members of the Environmental Service Providers Association (ESPA), Ghana.

She particularly singled out Zoomlion for commendation, noting that the company has provided her outfit with a pick-up to help in monitoring the environment.

She reaffirmed that her ministry will continue to pursue water and sanitation policies which benefit the good people of this country.

For his part, the Western Region Minister, Dr. Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, described the project as a huge one that provides jobs for over 250 people.

While praising the president for gracing the occasion, the Executive Chairman-Jospong Group of Companies, Dr. Joseph Siaw-Agyepong, disclosed that the project will sit on a 200-acre land.

He went on to add that it will comprise a 400-tonne solid waste recycling and composting plant; a 1,000 cubic metre wastewater treatment facility to serve about 2 million people; and staff quarters that will accommodate 250 staff members.

Other facilities are a training and research centre laboratory, and a 7.5 kilometre road from Asaakae to the site, he said.

“When completed it will create about 250 jobs for the indigenes, and indirect jobs for 1,500.”

According to Dr. Siaw-Agyepong, both treatment facilities will be completed within 11 months.

“The solid waste treatment will be completed by three months and the liquid waste treatment will be completed by 8 months,” he revealed.