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President John Dramani Mahama has ordered the immediate activation of waste transfer stations managed by Zoomlion Ghana Limited to accelerate refuse collection and disposal in the Greater Accra Region following recent floods.
Speaking during the second day of the National Clean-up Exercise in the Alajo suburb of Accra on Saturday, Mahama said the six transfer stations, built more than nine years ago but never put into operation, would help improve waste management by allowing refuse collectors to dispose of waste closer to their communities.
“Unfortunately, they were not put into operation. So, we have asked the contractor, Zoomlion, to open the transfer stations so that the *aboboyaas* and others can take the garbage to the transfer stations,” Mahama said.
He said the arrangement would eliminate the need for waste collectors to travel long distances to disposal facilities, reducing operational costs and improving the efficiency of waste evacuation.
Under the new arrangement, Zoomlion will transport waste from the transfer stations using heavy-duty trucks to approved treatment and final disposal facilities, including the Accra Compost and Recycling Plant (ACARP) and the Accra Integrated Recycling and Compost Plant (IRECOP).
The transfer stations are located at Achimota, Teshie, Kpone, Ashaiman, Pantang and Adipa.
Flood recovery
Mahama said the nationwide clean-up exercise had drawn a strong public response but urged more residents to participate in efforts to restore sanitation after the floods.
He said previous clean-up campaigns had often failed because refuse removed from drains was left by the roadside, only to be washed back into gutters during subsequent rains.
The president said military personnel and other state agencies would continue clearing waste beyond the two-day exercise until all debris removed from drains had been transported to disposal sites.
“Ghana is a resilient country, Accra is a resilient city and we will bounce back better than before,” he said.
Zoomlion expands operations
Executive Chairman of the Jospong Group, Dr Joseph Siaw Agyepong, welcomed the directive and said Zoomlion had already begun operating the transfer stations.
He said the company, working with the Environmental Service Providers Association (ESPA), Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) and other partners, had expanded waste evacuation operations across all 29 assemblies in the Greater Accra Region.
According to him, the exercise involved about 150 haulage trucks, 30 compactors, road sweepers, more than 2,000 tricycle waste operators, over 1,000 Zoomlion personnel and an additional 60 long-haul trailers deployed to increase waste evacuation capacity.
He urged residents to adopt responsible waste disposal practices, saying much of the refuse removed during the exercise had accumulated over several years.
Minister inspects facilities
Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs Ahmed Ibrahim later inspected some of the transfer stations and the Accra Integrated Recycling and Compost Plant to assess their readiness.
He said activating the facilities would significantly improve waste collection and transportation across the capital and praised the public-private partnership supporting the sanitation campaign.
Officials at IRECOP demonstrated how waste is sorted, recycled and converted into reusable materials, including plastics, metals and compost, as part of efforts to promote a circular waste management system instead of relying solely on landfill disposal.
The national clean-up exercise brought together government officials, security agencies, local assemblies, sanitation workers and thousands of volunteers as authorities intensified recovery efforts following recent flooding in parts of Accra.
