Zoomlion Ghana Limited, in collaboration with the West Gonja Municipal Assembly, has commenced a disinfection and disinfestation exercise in Damongo as part of efforts to safeguard public health following the June floods.
The exercise, which forms part of Zoomlion’s corporate social responsibility commitment, is targeting public places of interest within the municipality to help reduce the risk of diseases and other health hazards associated with flooding.
In an exclusive interview with Spear fm, Ishmael Ashitey, Zoomlion’s Savannah Regional Manager, said the nationwide initiative is being undertaken in partnership with municipal assemblies across the country.
He explained that the exercise is a direct response to the floods recorded in June, with the focus on disinfecting public spaces that may have been affected.
“We are doing this as a response to the flood that took place in June. What we are doing now, we are doing the disinfestation of all public places of interest. That’s the markets, lorry parks, some institutions, container sites. We are doing this so that they reduce the spread of cholera outbreak and what have you”.
The MCE for Damongo Hon. Yakubu Yussif Castro, also added that Flooding was minimal in West Gonja and the Savannah Region, but recent rains have left stagnant water in several areas and therefore needed to control insects and help prevent the spread of disease.
The exercise is therefore intended to ensure that public spaces and market areas are properly treated and maintained.
“It is part of the activities that the government and various institutions have joined hands to undertake so that we reduce the incidence of diseases out of the flooding. Over here in the west Gonja municipality and Savannah region, such floods were minimal”
He also called for attitudinal change among residents, stressing that maintaining a clean environment should not be the sole responsibility of the Assembly. He urged residents to take personal responsibility for proper sanitation, while the Assembly continues to educate the public on good sanitation practices.
“It is not for the assembly alone to always be picking up this activity. We are also appealing to and we’ve been educating the citizenry that our attitudes maintaining cleanliness in our environment. If there is a container put for you to come and dump rubbish”.
The collaboration between the municipal authorities, Zoomlion Ghana and other institutions is expected to support ongoing efforts to safeguard public health, particularly in areas where people congregate.
