GAMA/GKMA boosting local capacity in biodigester construction, maintenance

THE GREATER Accra/Kumasi Metropolitan Areas Sanitation and Water Project (GAMA/GKMA SWP) has started building a cadre of local technicians and artisans in the construction and maintenance of biodigester toilets, an official disclosed on Wednesday.

 A Sanitation Engineering Specialist with the GAMA/GKMA project, Ing. Kwadwo Antwi Gyasi,stated this during the MOLE XXXIV WASH conference in Jirapa in the Upper West Region.

Mr Gyasi said since the introduction of the potable toilets in the country and its adoption by the project to meet the needs of household toilets in low-income urban communities, the demand for the technology has gone up with many private individuals and institutions buying into the model.

 He said many contractors have therefore been building the biodigester toilets for households and institutions, and so there is the need for to train artisans and technicians for the sector.

According to him, the GAMA/GKMA project foresaw this need and developed a manual to guide contractors and artisans who build biodigester toilets.

“We are currently using the manual to train students in some technical schools, including the Kumasi Technical Institute and other technical institutions,

“We believe that these trained artisans and technicians will create the necessary skilled manpower base for the construction and maintenance of the toilets to the desired standards,” Engineer Gyasi stated.

 Since its inception, the GAMA/GKMA project has constructed potable biodigester toilets for 59,000 households in low-income urban communities in Accra and Kumasi with 598 gender-friendly for schools and health facilities in the two cities.