When I was growing up in a little town in Ghana, the beginning of the rain season (signaling the end of Harmattan) was good and welcoming news not only to the farmers but to all of us (end of white dry lips and itching dry skin). However the changing global climate patterns combined with human factors have completely changed this welcoming news to many people in Ghana. The approach of the rain season sends a chilling horror feeling to residents across many parts of Ghana (especially the capital Accra).
The recent recurrent disasters in Accra and its surroundings reinforce this assertion. The root courses of such recurrent destruction (loss of lives, properties, businesses, etc.) as a result of the rains are many. Among them are irresponsible developments along/on river banks. Irresponsible waste disposal behaviors of many residents where domestic waste end up chocking drainage channels and gutters with the garbage they throw away. Poor maintenance and neglect of flood relief and drainage channels by city council officials entrusted to keep such facilities functioning, etc.
As is always the case in Ghana, immediately after such disasters, the citizens angrily react promptly and loudly in an agonizing way demanding that something should be done to end the sufferings of the people and future occurrences of such tragedies. However, this outcry normally last three days (one week at most – in decreasing order of intensity) and we all return to the business as usual way of life – throwing things into gutters and streets choking rivers/streams with filth etc.
The most annoying thing one normally observed after the occurrence of such disasters is the lineup of politicians using the occasion for some cheap political gains. Though these politicians know exactly and are aware of the pending dangers in these communities, normally, they pretend in their speeches, portraying a feeling that such occurrence took them by surprise and therefore are going to work even harder to prevent future occurrences (the same story come next year).
The next most annoying observation is that, immediately after such disasters, most citizens’ rush to religious organizations for comfort and protection from the “devil” instead of taking responsibility for their actions/inactions in facilitating such tragedies.
Ghana is a country where free ride is the order of the day (the environment as a common good); all across the country, people (irrespective of age, status or position) just throw away rubbish around anyhow and irresponsibly while expecting the environment to do the magic of cleaning (or sometimes expecting that the waste somehow vanishes or vaporized into a thin air). Virtually, no one takes responsibility for their actions/inaction being a major contributing factor in the frequent rainfall-disasters occurring around our cities. The cynical, but deeply entrenched “I don’t care attitude” of Ghanaian has created a vicious cycle of blame-games where politicians (in an effort to cover their incompetence) point fingers at the people while the people (in an effort to cover their irresponsibility) point fingers at anyone but themselves (at the end the “devil” take the blame).
Plastic, electronic and human waste constitute a sizable portion of the country’s waste problem, but it seems both previous and current administrations have not been able to tackle this problem competently, even though many countries around the globe have demonstrated the effectiveness of using simple but innovative recycling approach in managing such waste problems. For instance, the introduction of “pfand” on plastic and other packaging materials in Germany effectively stop people from throwing away such packaging materials on the streets. People willingly go around every day, virtually cleaning the streets of plastic waste as they collect such “pfand labeled” materials in return for cash rewards.
In Kenya, for instance, private companies and individuals are turning all kinds of waste materials into different forms of energy, saving both the environment and the country money. In Jamaica, an initiative of a climate conscious woman is saving the environment while creating jobs by replacing the use of charcoal with briquette made out of farm and other waste materials.
These and many other such examples, show that any resource could be considered a waste until a useful purpose (i.e. normally a price) is attached to such resources (formally known as waste). Hence, as a country, we need to move from our current inefficient waste management practices to a more sustainable resource management approach. We need to develop a new environmental conscious culture, moving away from just disposing of (throwing away) waste to finding a way in maximizing the re-utilization and or re-use of such materials we consider waste.
To effectively tackle Ghana’s waste problems, the country needs, a collaborative effort (i.e. both private and public support mechanisms in providing business advice and training, market development services, access to product/technology testing facilities) to encourage the development of novel local knowledge and processes which improves our current resource use efficiency.
To this end, Ghana’s Climate Innovation Center (GCIC) initiative being established at Ashesi University College to spearhead and support local entrepreneurs in developing clean environmental technologies and solutions for Ghana’s green economy need all our support, encouragement and praise. A close collaborative engagement with all stakeholders in the development of sustainable but cost effective local knowledge and technologies will facilitate the transition from our current inefficient waste management practices to a more sustainable green growth approach in tackling Ghana’s Waste problems.
Image Upload
Add image