Government hands over 1,200 desk to Ashaiman Schools (Daily Graphic Tuesday June 16,2026)

https://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/ghana-news-government-hands-over-1-200-desks-to-ashaiman-schools.html#:~:text=The%20Ashaiman%20Municipality%20has%20received,in%20schools%20across%20the%20municipality.
 

Government hands over 1,200 desks to Ashaiman schools

 

The Ashaiman Municipality has received 1,200 pieces of school furniture from the government  as part of efforts to improve teaching and learning.

The support is also part of efforts by government to eliminate the shift system in schools across the municipality.

The furniture, which comprised desks and chairs for both students and teachers, was officially handed over during a ceremony held last Friday.

In attendance were the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashaiman, Dr  Ernest Henry Norgbey; Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) Freeman Tsekpo, and Municipal Director of Education, Gloria Kwakuyi.

The intervention formed  part of a nationwide initiative by the government to address furniture shortages and infrastructure challenges in schools and create a more conducive environment for teaching and learning.

Quality education

The MP for Ashaiman Dr Ernest Henry Norgbey speaking at the event said access to quality education remained a priority for the government adding that the distribution of furniture was one of the promises made to improve educational delivery across the country.

"We are all aware of the furniture challenges and infrastructure deficits that exist in many schools across Ghana. The President promised to provide furniture to schools and today that promise has been fulfilled," he said.

Dr Norgbey said the government intended to continue supplying furniture annually to schools in order to bridge existing deficits and support efforts to improve educational outcomes.

He urged students, teachers and school authorities to take proper care of the furniture to ensure it serves its purpose for many years.

He was confident that the furniture would help reduce the shift system in some schools within the municipality, where, he said, overcrowding and inadequate classroom facilities have compelled pupils to attend classes in sessions.

Utilisation

The Ashaiman Municipal Chief Executive, Freeman Tsekpo, said the furniture would immediately make it possible to fully utilise a newly completed 12-unit classroom block at the Ashaiman Presbyterian Basic School.

He said although the classroom block had been completed, it could not be put into full use because furniture was unavailable.

"With the arrival of these desks, we can furnish all the classrooms and officially bring the shift system at this school to an end," he stated.

Mr. Tsekpo disclosed that some of the furniture would also be sent to other schools within the municipality, including Government Complex School.

The Municipal Director of Education, Gloria Kwakuyi, welcomed the intervention and described it as a major boost to efforts aimed at ending the shift system in Ashaiman.

She said four schools in the municipality still operated the shift system and expressed the hope that continued investment in classroom infrastructure and furniture would help eliminate the shift system completely in the municipality.

Writer's email benjamin.glover@graphic.com.gh

 

Diminishing landfill capacity. Rains render Kpone dumpsite inaccessible. Sanitation crisis looms (Daily Graphic, Tuesday June 16, 2026)

https://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/ghana-news-diminishing-landfill-capacity-rains-render-kpone-dumpsite-inaccessible-sanitation-crisis-looms.html

Diminishing landfill capacity: Rains render Kpone dumpsite inaccessible - Sanitation crisis looms

 A looming sanitation crisis is threatening communities across the eastern corridor of the Greater Accra Region as the Kpone Controlled Dumpsite, the area's primary waste disposal facility, struggles under the weight of growing volumes of refuse and diminishing landfill capacity.

Waste management companies operating in the region have raised concerns about increasing difficulties in disposing of refuse at the facility, warning that the situation could severely disrupt household waste collection services if urgent interventions are not implemented.

The challenge has been compounded by recent heavy rains, which have rendered parts of the dumpsite difficult to access. Operators say the poor weather conditions, coupled with the site's near-exhausted capacity, have resulted in significant delays in the disposal of collected waste.

 As a consequence, several communities, particularly within the Tema Metropolis, are already experiencing irregular waste collection, with refuse accumulating in front of homes and creating growing environmental and public health concerns.

One of the waste management firms affected by the situation, J. Stanley Owusu and Company Limited, has apologised to residents of Tema for delays in lifting household waste over the past few weeks.

In a message to its clients, dated Tuesday, June 9, 2026, the company attributed the disruption to technical challenges and operational difficulties at the final disposal site.

"Please accept our apologies for the recent delays in your waste collection.

 

 

 

Technical issues and heavy rainfall at the final disposal site have caused operational difficulties, but we are working diligently to resume your scheduled service as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience," the company stated.

For residents, however, the impact is becoming increasingly difficult to bear.

Mr Isaac Mensah, a resident of Tema Community Eight, described the situation as alarming, saying waste from households in his neighbourhood had not been collected for nearly three weeks.

"The refuse is beginning to produce an unpleasant smell, especially after the rains. It is becoming a serious nuisance," he told the Daily Graphic.

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According to him, some residents have been forced to hire motorcycle operators at additional cost to transport their waste elsewhere in order to prevent further accumulation.

 Recall

The current developments appear to confirm concerns raised earlier this year by the Minister for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ahmed Ibrahim, who warned that communities in eastern Accra were sitting on a "sanitation time bomb".

During a tour of the Kpone Controlled Dumpsite on February 23, 2026, the Minister disclosed that the landfill, which receives hospital, domestic and industrial waste from about 10 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), was nearing full capacity and could run out of space within weeks if immediate action was not taken.

"If critical steps are not taken, the entire eastern part of Accra will have nowhere to dump its waste," he cautioned. Information gathered by the Daily Graphic indicates that the landfill has significantly exceeded its intended lifespan.

While the facility was originally designed to operate with an airspace height of 16 metres, that capacity has long been exhausted, with waste currently piled beyond 24 metres.

Receiving between 600 and 800 tonnes of waste daily, the facility is also grappling with recurring fire outbreaks, leachate overflow, deteriorating access roads and operational congestion.

With the rainy season expected to continue and waste volumes steadily increasing, stakeholders are calling for urgent measures to expand disposal capacity, rehabilitate the facility or identify alternative landfill sites to avert what could become a major sanitation and public health emergency in Greater Accra

End Writer's email benjamin.glover@graphic.com.gh