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. 2017 Jul 3;17(1):615.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-017-4537-8.

Correlates of domestic waste management and related health outcomes in Sunyani, Ghana: a protocol towards enhancing policy

Henry O Addo  1 , Elvis J Dun-Dery  2 , Eugenia Afoakwa  3 , Addai Elizabeth  3 , Amposah Ellen  3 , Mwinfaug Rebecca  3
Affiliations

Correlates of domestic waste management and related health outcomes in Sunyani, Ghana: a protocol towards enhancing policy

Henry O Addo et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: Domestic waste generation has contributed significantly to hampering national waste management efforts. It poses serious threat to national development and requires proper treatment and management within and outside households. The problem of improper waste management has always been a challenge in Ghana, compelling several national surveys to report on the practice of waste management. However, little is known about how much waste is generated and managed within households and there is a serious dearth of information for national policy and planning. This paper seeks to document the handling and practice of waste management, including collection, storage, transportation and disposal along with the types and amount of waste generated by Households and their related health outcome.

Methods: The study was a descriptive cross-sectional study and used a multi-stage sampling technique to sample 700 households. The study was planned and implemented from January to May 2015. It involved the use of structured questionnaires in the data collection over the period. Factors such as demographic characteristics, amount of waste generated, types of waste bins used within households, waste recycling, cost of disposing waste, and distance to dumpsite were all assessed.

Results: The paper shows that each surveyed household generated 0.002 t of waste per day, of which 29% are both organic and inorganic. Though more than half of the respondents (53.6%) had positive attitude towards waste management, only 29.1% practiced waste management. The study reveals that there is no proper management of domestic waste except in few households that segregate waste. The study identified several elements as determinants of waste management practice. Female respondents were less likely to practice waste management (AOR 0.45; 95% Cl 0.29, 0.79), household size also determined respondents practice (AOR 0.26; Cl 0.09, 0.77). Practice of recycling (AOR 0.03; Cl 0.02, 0.08), distance to dumpsite (AOR 0.45; Cl 0.20, 0.99), were all significant predictors of waste management practice. Cholera which is a hygiene related disease was three times more likely to determine households' waste management practice (AOR 3.22; Cl 1.33, 7.84).

Conclusion: Considering the low waste management practice among households, there is the need for improved policy and enhanced education on proper waste management practice among households.

Keywords: Domestic; Households; Municipal assembly; Waste generation; Waste management.

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Conflict of interest statement

Authors’ information

HOD holds a Master of Philosophy from the University of Ghana. He is currently a Ph.D. Fellow at the same University and a lecturer at the Catholic University College of Ghana. EJD holds a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Ghana. He is a graduate researcher of the University of Ghana. EA, EA, EA, and RM hold Bachelor of Public Health Degrees each. They were at the time of submission of this manuscript, students of the Catholic University College of Ghana.

Ethical approval and consent to participate

Ethical clearance was obtained from the National Waste Management Authority of Ghana (ZoomLion Ghana) and the Ethics Review Board of the Catholic University of Ghana. Written informed consent was obtained from all participants after the objectives, purpose and methodology of the study was explained to them. Participation in the survey was completely voluntary and no benefits were given to participants. Participants were asked to sign or thumb print the consent form and after which they were invited orally to participate in the study. During this stage, the researchers also ensured the privacy and confidentially of participants throughout the study period.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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