More than 200 young people in Ho have taken part in a clean-up exercise organised by the Volta Regional branch of the National Youth Authority (NYA) to mark International Youth Day.
The youth cleaned the Ho main market and the main lorry station, desilting gutters and sweeping the two areas.
Addressing the participants after the exercise on Wednesday, the Volta Regional Director of the NYA, Mr Yao Semorde, said the exercise was aimed at inculcating in the youth the spirit of volunteerism and encouraging them to take an active interest in environmental protection.
He said the authority would also organise a tree-planting exercise as part of efforts to deepen the youth’s commitment to protecting the environment.
Mr Semorde urged the youth to demonstrate patriotism, contribute meaningfully to national development and help make Ghana a better place for future generations.
He explained that a number of activities had been lined up to mark the Day, including a church service with the Lord Pentecostal Church and an engagement with the Muslim community in Ho, before the celebrations were climaxed with a national event in Kumasi.
An Environmental Health Officer at the Ho Municipal Assembly, Ms Esi Nam Agbakpe, commended the NYA for organising the exercise and noted that environmental cleanliness should not be left solely to metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies.
She said maintaining a clean environment was a collective responsibility and urged individuals and organisations to play their part.
Ms Agbakpe mentioned that environmental cleanliness not only promoted good health but also enhanced productivity.
The Volta Regional Chairman of the Progressive Transport Owners Association (PROTOA), Mr Isaac Amenyo, appealed to the Ho Municipal Assembly to undertake re-engineering work on the gutter at the exit of the lorry station to improve environmental sanitation in the area.
Mr Amenyo, a former Assembly member, said the gutter previously carried wastewater from the market and the station into a main drainage system.
He said the construction of market stores around the station had, however, blocked the gutter, resulting in the accumulation of water at the exit of the station and the flooding of the road.
He said efforts to get the assembly to restore the free flow of water through the gutter had so far proved futile.
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