Residents in parts of Accra are grappling with a worsening waste disposal crisis, saying they have been unable to dispose of household refuse for nearly a month due to disruptions in waste collection services.
A visit by Citi News to Jamestown and Laterbiokoshie revealed heaps of uncollected refuse both inside homes and in front of residential compounds. Frustrated residents said tricycle waste collectors, who typically collect household waste, have stopped operating in their communities.
Speaking to Citi News, Olivia Agyeman, a resident of Laterbiokoshie, said she had been left with no option but to dump her refuse in a nearby bush after waiting for weeks for collection.
“The tricycle operators no longer come to my area to collect refuse. My waste has been sitting here for over a month, so I’ve been forced to dump it in the bush,” she said.
In Jamestown, siblings Irene and Priscilla Torsu, who live in a compound house, said accessing waste collection services has become increasingly difficult, particularly during the rainy season.
“When it rains, it’s very difficult to find tricycle operators. Even when you see them passing by, they tell you their vehicles are already full and that they now have to travel all the way to Kasoa to dispose of the waste, which is very far. Because of that, instead of charging five cedis, they now charge between 20 and 30 cedis,” they explained.
According to the residents, tricycle waste collectors have attributed the disruption to landfill sites reaching full capacity, making it difficult for them to dispose of collected refuse and continue their operations.
The prolonged disruption has resulted in the emergence of several illegal dumping sites across affected communities, with some residents resorting to disposing of refuse in drains, open spaces, and nearby water bodies.
Residents fear the situation could worsen sanitation conditions and increase the risk of disease outbreaks, particularly during the ongoing rainy season, if urgent measures are not taken to restore regular waste collection services.
Further concerns were raised when the news team visited Kaneshie Market, where the market’s only refuse disposal site had overflowed its designated container. Flies hovered around vegetables and other food items on sale, while traders struggled with the pungent odour emanating from the waste.
“Here at Kaneshie, the refuse always overflows the designated container, and there’s no one to collect it. Then the bad smell starts to spread. It’s causing a lot of illnesses and attracting disease vectors and rodents,” Dorcas Aikins, a trader, told Citi News.
Concerns over a looming sanitation crisis continue to mount across the country. In the Greater Accra Region, residents of Weija-McCarthy have raised an alarm over their landfill site reaching full capacity.
Similar concerns have emerged in Tema and surrounding communities, where the Kpone landfill has also reached its limit. Beyond Accra, authorities in the Ashanti Region are grappling with similar pressure at the Oti landfill site.
