Savannah Alliance Ghana (SAG) creates awareness of business opportunities in the WASH Sector

Savannah Alliance Ghana (SAG), a non-governmental organisation partnering SNV
Netherlands Development Organisation has implemented its 'Healthy Future for All' (HF4A) project which serves as a way of taking steps to create awareness on the business opportunities available in the WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) sector that people within the Nandom and Lambussie Districts can explore.

In a radio programme at Nandom FM, the project lead by Stanley To-ang spelled out some of the opportunities available in the WASH sector for people especially the youth.

According to him, at the small-scale level, some interventions that people can leverage on include mobile toilet business.

During occasions or gatherings such as funerals, getting access to the loo becomes a big problem thus the mobile toilet is a viable business that can be explored and used to salvage the situation during such occasions while putting money in the pockets of the operators.

He added that people can be made to pay a token to use the toilet facility then the toilet is dismantled and taken away after the program or activity.

Aside the mobile toilets, people can also go into the provision of small-scale water supply systems. Individuals or groups can construct water supply points within the community where families can have their water supply from at a fee.
This can be started on a small scale and one could expanded later.

Also, another business that requires less capital to start is the waste collection business. Using a single tricycle or motor king, an individual or a group can start a waste collection business.

Using the tricycle as an example, The tricycle can move around houses to collect solid waste from households at a fee generating some income for the people involved.

At the large-scale level, one can engage in the management, operation and maintenance of WASH infrastructure or services.

Most households that make used of toilet facilities mostly get stranded when they get full and emptying them becomes a problem. To curb this situation, one only needs to get a truck that will be used to empty fecal sludge from toilets. The sludge collected can also be processed into compost and sold to farmers as manure.

Lastly, one can also venture into sanitary landfills and biogas production. Solid waste and fecal waste can be used to produce biogas that households can use to cook and even power some machines.

Aside the above-mentioned opportunities, there are several others that individuals and groups can benefit from. The youth in particular were entreated to make use of some of these available opportunities to create jobs for themselves rather relying on government for employment.

"Using the WASH credit facility from the Nandom Rural Bank, one can start small and expand with time", he said.

Savannah Alliance Ghana (SAG), a partner in the implementation of the HF4A is a capacity development organisation that provides tailored-made capacity building for development-related agencies.

It operates mostly in the Northern part of Ghana with special interest in the WASH sector, food security, agric and livelihood improvement, education and environmental conservation.