The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and its partners have trained about 100 leaders of waste collectors’ groups in Accra and Tema on best waste management practices to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 infection by the waste collectors.
The training, which was a Training of Trainers (ToT), is part of the Ghana Waste Recovery Platform’s campaign to project the important role of waste collectors in the COVID-19 response.
A press statement from the UNDP said participants were taken through topics such as health and safety, infection prevention and best practices for solid waste management, as well as infectious waste management in terms of collection, transportation and disposal.
The participants were taken through proper hand-washing techniques, proper attire to wear for waste collection, types of wastes and the level of risk for waste collectors and pickers.
The statement cited WIEGO Global as saying that Ghana has about 20,000-35,000 people who are committed to protecting the environment and human health through the collection of waste, especially in major cities.
Accordingly, since the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country, waste collectors have been collecting and disposing of potentially infectious waste (used face masks, gloves and face shields) with little or no personal protective equipment (PPEs), exposing them to the virus and putting their lives at risk.
Therefore, the Ghana Waste Recovery Platform campaign aim at mobilising resources to provide personal protective equipment (PPEs) for waste collectors, sensitise the public on the safe use and disposal of face masks, tissues, face shields, gloves and promote effective waste management behavioral change.
The training was voluntarily facilitated by Tutors and Officials from Accra school of Hygiene and Ghana Health Service, as their contribution to Ghana ‘Waste’ Recovery Platform’s COVID-19 response activities.
The UNDP partner organisations include the Environmental Service Providers Association (ESPA Ghana), and Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO Global).
Ernest Appau, ISD
