A Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Technical Specialist at World Vision Ghana, Mr. Yaw Attah Arhin, has said open defecation is one of the greatest threats to life and child wellbeing in Ghana and Sub-Saharan Africa.
This, he said, was because a United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) study had revealed that one gram of human faeces may contain 10 million viruses, 1 million bacteria, 1,000 parasite cysts, and 100 parasite eggs, which had negative consequences for health, productivity and socio-economic development.
Mr. Arhin noted that World Vision was, therefore, concerned that 5.5 million people in Ghana still practiced open defecation. This translates into approximately 17.7% of Ghana’s population, according to the Population and Housing Census 2021 (PHC 2021).
Mr. Arhin said this at the launch of the Bono Regional branch of the Media Coalition against Open Defecation (M-CODE) in Sunyani.
Mr. Arhin brought to light a disturbing and causative factor of open defecation that was inadequate decent and affordable toilet facilities on the various highways that compel passengers to defecate in the bushes during the course of their journeys.
According to Mr. Arhin, it was also sad to observe that 3,600 children died every year from diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera, and typhoid fever when these were easily preventable with affordable and proven interventions such as the use of improved latrines and hand washing with soap under running water.
Mr. Arhin indicated that the above motivated World Vision Ghana to facilitate the formation of the M-CODe, in partnership with Kings Hall Media.
Mr. Arhin charged the coalition to surge forward and strongly link the regional branches to field level programming of World Vision Ghana, and work closely with the Municipal and District Assemblies (MDAs) to identify and implement innovative interventions to end open defecation in the region within a reasonable timeframe.
