Recent data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) paints a concerning picture of progress despite considerable efforts to address Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) issues in Ghana.
The latest statistics reveal that 25% of households (one in every four) in the country still practice open defecation.
While the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target 6.2 aims to end open defecation globally by 2030, Ghana’s latest data from the 2022 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) indicates that the country is struggling to meet this target.
Open defecation rates are higher in rural areas, where 39% of households practice open defecation, compared to 12% in urban areas, still above the 0% target for 2030.
According to WHO/UNICEF estimates, close to 1.8 billion people worldwide either defecate in the open or use inadequate and unhygienic toilets.
In 2023, the UN in Ghana called for increased public finance and more private sector investment in WASH, describing the sanitation situation in Ghana as very poor, with only 25% having access to basic sanitation services, 57% using shared or public facilities, and 18% still practicing open defecation. Poor sanitation conditions pose serious public health risks.
The 2022 DHS figures are consistent with these estimates, showing that overall access to basic sanitation services in Ghana is 24%, well below the National Medium-Term Development Policy Framework Basic Sanitation Services Targets for 2022 of 39%.
The Greater Accra Region is the only region with access to basic sanitation services above the national target, with 40% of its population having access. All other 15 regions have access of less than 30%, with the Savannah region having the lowest percentage of households with basic sanitation services at only 11%.
The 2022 DHS also indicates that 44% of wastewater flows back into nature untreated, with disastrous health and environmental consequences. The report reveals that 47% of households lack appropriate management of household excreta.
While access to drinking water in Ghana remains relatively high, with 84% of the population having at least basic drinking water service according to the 2022 DHS, 22% of rural households still rely on surface water and unimproved services for drinking water.
While 98% of households in Greater Accra have at least basic service for drinking water, only 43% of households in the North East region have basic service for drinking water.
WHO estimates that in 2019, 7,653 deaths in Ghana were caused by WASH-related illnesses, meaning 21 people per day, or almost one person every hour, died from preventable WASH-related diseases.