Hundreds of residents of Daboya, the district capital of North Gonja in the Savannah Region, on Saturday, October 3, 2026, came out in their numbers to participate in the National Sanitation Day exercise.

The exercise, which recorded one of the highest turnouts in recent times, brought together traditional authorities, security agencies, departmental heads, and community members to clean major parts of the town.

National Sanitation Day in Ghana is observed 12 times a year. It falls on the first Saturday of every month across all 16 regions and 261 districts. The initiative was first introduced on November 1, 2014, following the cholera outbreak in Ghana, and was relaunched in September 2025 by President John Dramani Mahama and the Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim. Under the relaunched policy, cleanliness has become a key performance indicator for all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs).

In Daboya, the community-driven initiative was organized by the North Gonja District Assembly. The converging point was the Daboya Lorry Station, from where participants were dispatched to various locations.

Several parts of the community were cleaned, including the Daboya Lorry Station and its choked drains, the Wasipe Wura's Palace, the Daboya Health Centre, and adjoining streets and gutters. Heaps of refuse, overgrown weeds, and silted gutters were cleared during the over four-hour exercise.

Speaking to Radio Tamale during the exercise, the Coordinating Director of the North Gonja District Assembly emphasized the Assembly's commitment to maintaining a clean environment.

He noted that the Assembly has put in place the necessary measures to sustain cleanliness in the district and prevent the re-accumulation of filth.

"As an Assembly, we are fully committed to keeping Daboya and the entire district clean. We have made the necessary arrangements for logistics, trucks, and regular collection. We are appealing to residents to make sanitation a daily responsibility," he said.

He also thanked the Wasipe traditional authority and all stakeholders for their support and participation.

The District Director of Education for North Gonja, Mr. Kofi Odum Apatse, said sanitation plays a vital role in education and child health. He stressed that schools must lead the campaign for cleanliness.

"When the school environment is clean, teaching and learning improves. We are encouraging our pupils and teachers to become sanitation ambassadors in their homes and communities. This will greatly help Daboya, especially the schools and the educational sector," Mr. Apatse stated.

On his part, the North Gonja District Environmental Health Officer, Mr. Ayuba Abdul Rahman, educated residents on the health benefits of a clean environment.

According to him, a clean environment helps prevent several communicable diseases caused by poor sanitation.

"Keeping the environment clean will help us avoid diseases such as cholera, malaria, typhoid and diarrhoea. Stagnant water in choked gutters breeds mosquitoes, while indiscriminate dumping of refuse breeds flies that contaminate our food. Cleanliness is a health protection measure,".

He added that his unit will intensify house-to-house inspections and enforce sanitation bye-laws, including the law that mandates every household to clean its frontage and desilt its drains.

Representing the Wasipe Wura Palace, Asafo Musah Mahama commended community members for their massive participation but warned against indiscriminate dumping of refuse.

He said the Palace frowns upon the habit of dumping refuse anyhow and called for discipline in waste disposal.

"We thank all community members for partaking in this exercise. On behalf of the Wasipe Wura Palace, I want to caution everyone to desist from dropping refuse indiscriminately. It destroys our environment and disrespects our tradition. Let us continue to keep Daboya clean," he said.

The exercise also saw the active participation of officers from the Ghana National Fire Service, the Ghana Police Service, and the Ghana Immigration Service in Daboya. Their involvement ensured orderliness and boosted the morale of residents.

At the end of the exercise, several tonnes of solid waste were collected and transported to the Assembly's final disposal site.

Residents have appealed to the District Assembly to provide more communal refuse containers and dustbins at vantage points and to ensure regular waste collection.