The Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim (MP) has officially announced the reintroduction of the National Sanitation Day (NSD) as part of government’s renewed “Clean Up Ghana Agenda."

According to him, the reintroduction aimed to restore discipline and pride in public spaces, empower local government structures by making sanitation a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) for all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs), and foster citizen participation and accountability.

The Minister made the announcement on Wednesday during a meeting with Members of Parliament (MPs) and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) from the Greater Accra Region held at the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) Head Office.

Hon. Ibrahim directed all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to ensure that all public spaces, ceremonial streets, and visible nuisances within their jurisdictions are cleared by 8:00 a.m. daily starting September 4, 2025.

He emphasised that Assemblies must prioritise desilting of drains, removal of refuse heaps, and cleaning of markets, lorry parks, schools, and ceremonial routes.

To sustain compliance, Assemblies were to mobilise environmental health officers, waste management contractors, and community volunteers as well as submit monthly sanitation reports to their Regional Coordinating Councils for onward submission to the Ministry he said.

He pointed out that the NSD, first launched in 2014, had proven that collective action could transform communities but admitted that enthusiasm for the exercise had declined over time.

“The re-introduction of the NSD is therefore a renewed social contract between government and citizens, anchored on accountability, enforcement, and sustainability,” he stated.

He disclosed that 80% of the District Assemblies Common Fund had been released to support sanitation activities, removing financial constraints as an excuse for non-performance.

“Sanitation is now a key performance indicator for all MMDCEs. Your performance as Chief Executive will be judged directly on your results in cleanliness,” he warned.

The Minister announced the establishment of a dedicated sanitation hotline and a central dashboard to monitor reports from citizens in real time.

“This hotline and monitoring system will close the gap between citizens and assemblies and ensure a culture of accountability,” he added, while appealing to the media to support public education efforts.

Speaking on behalf of Members of Parliament in the Greater Accra Region, the Deputy Minister for Agriculture and MP for Ayawaso West Constituency pledged Parliament’s full support.

 “The basic point is that we want to make Accra clean,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense that we produce so much food, yet we are eating it in a dirty environment. Whatever it takes to make our constituencies clean, we will do it. It is meaningless to have Madina clean and Ayawaso West dirty. We are fully committed to the programme and to the reset agenda, ”he said .

The Dean of MMDCEs for the Greater Accra Region and MCE for Ga West, Hon. John Desmond Sowah Nai pledged the support of all 29 MMDCEs, promising to make sanitation a competitive and inclusive effort adding that sanitation task forces and coordinators were already operational in all assemblies.

 “We ourselves want to be pioneers and role models for sanitation, and we pledge 100% support to ensure implementation,” he said.

Present at the event were the Deputy Minister for Local Government, Chieftancy and Religious Affairs and MP for La Dadekotopon Constituency, Hon. Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture and MP for Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency, Hon. John Dumelo, MPs and  MMDCES from the Greater Accra Region, President of the Environmental Service Providers Association and CEO of Jospong Group of Companies, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, among others.