Public Health Risks Associated with Unsafe Fecal Sludge Management in Accra, Ghana

H Yakubu, D Berendes, K Robb, A Kirby, Y Wang, J Michiel, B Doe, S Raj, J Ampofo, CL Moe

UNC Water and Health Conference (October 2017)

At the 2017 UNC Water and Health Conference in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, David Berendes and Suraja Raj presented on behalf of Habib Yakubu. Both colleagues discussed the rationale, design, and results of the SaniPath Tool, a tool which evaluates public health risks from unsafe fecal sludge management (FSM) in low resource urban neighborhoods around the world. In this presentation, the results from four representative neighborhoods in Accra, Ghana were shared. The four neighborhoods were classified using a score scale into “very poor”, “poor”, “moderate” and “good” sanitation neighborhoods. Behavior survey and environmental sampling data showed a general trend of fecal exposure that followed the classification of neighborhoods. However, produce had the greatest risk of exposure to fecal contamination regardless of the classification of the neighborhood. Overall the study found that unsafe FSM can lead to exposure to fecal contamination irrespective of where you live.

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