A 12-member delegation from Lome, the capital of Togo has paid a courtesy call on the Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Hon. Elizabeth Naa Kwatsoe Tawiah Sackey as part of a working visit to Ghana, to understudy the city's best waste management practices.  

The delegation comprised officials from the Municipality of Gulf 5, and the traditional authority, led by the Mayor Hon Kossi Agbenyega Aboka and Togbui Ayao Seble Yovo I respectively.  

Speaking during the visit the Mayor of the Municipality of Gulf 5, Hon. Aboka explained that the delegation was in the city of Accra to understudy its positive sanitation practices to be replicated in Lome. 

“We are here to understudy you, learn about waste management systems and the good sanitation practices that we can replicate to make Togo and Ghana clean as we further collaborate to establish a sister city relationship”. 

He was hopeful that officials from Lome would at the end of the visit learn best practices from Accra in its quest to make their city clean as well as establish a sister-city relationship that would pave the way for collaborative efforts to benefit both cities as far as sanitation was concerned.

On his part, Togbui Ayao Seble Yovo I said the visit was significant since it would give them an insight into the initiatives and innovations that had been adopted by their host, Accra, in the environmental sanitation sector, particularly waste management.

He added that the visit would enable the delegation to learn at first-hand how those practices could be adopted for implementation to make Lome and Togo the cleanest city and country in Africa in the foreseeable future.  

Welcoming the delegation, Hon Elizabeth Kwatsoe Sackey, Mayor of Accra expressed readiness to support and appreciation to the City of Lome for the recognition bestowed on Accra adding that the initiative would go a long way to help address issues of solid waste management in the City of Lome, and Africa as a whole. 

She disclosed the Assembly as part of measures to achieve the objectives was putting in plans to undertake activities including the development and implementation of waste data repository and information systems, sustainable financial schemes, awareness campaigns, improvement and structuring of treatment options and the strengthening of AMA's role in governance. 

The Mayor mentioned that the Assembly had a 4-year Medium Term Development Plan as well as a waste management strategy which served as a guide in managing waste adding that the key areas of the waste management plan were generation, collection and transportation of waste, which when leveraged on, could serve the best interest of the City of Lome as far as solid waste management was concerned.

She also mentioned that at the national level, there were policy frameworks to address waste within the country at large.

She pledged the AMA's support and commitment to support and transfer knowledge assuring that there would be an effective collaborative arrangement to ensure sustainable waste management in Lome concerning best practices.

In a closing remark, the first female Mayor of Accra commended the delegation for identifying the need for a better solid waste management practice for the City of Lome in an attempt to ensure a clean and healthy city and ensure its achievability noting that the best way to make this work was an effective technical Exchange programme between the two cities.

“I must commend you for this initiative. You have taken the right step and I know the almighty God will see you through. Attaining a clean city is a gradual process but of course achievable. Technical exchange programme is the ideal way,” she said.

The team led by the two significant political and traditional leaders later toured some notable areas within the City of Accra to get a better understanding of the city and its level of cleanliness.

Other members of the delegation were Yémétché N'tcha, Kévin Dieudonné Kossivi Assila, Komlan Mawuli Ahiantan, Antoine Habadadji, Yaovi Sedina Dzanyi, Alex Koffi Seto Prince Dzidzoli, Atchou Sagna, Amè Akofa Lanvi, Folly Vinyo Ayite, Kokou Agbewoanou Amegnran.