Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in Ghana
Due to the negative impacts of poor environmental sanitation (ES) on the environment, economy, public health, and livelihoods, various efforts are constantly being made in countries all over the world, particularly by their governments, to regulate public behaviour to conform to acceptable sanitatio...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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De Gruyter
2022-02-01
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| Series: | Open Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1515/openhe-2022-0001 |
| _version_ | 1797743795294437376 |
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| author | Mensah Justice Mattah Precious Agbeko D. Amoah John Oti Mattah Memuna Mawusi |
| author_facet | Mensah Justice Mattah Precious Agbeko D. Amoah John Oti Mattah Memuna Mawusi |
| author_sort | Mensah Justice |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Due to the negative impacts of poor environmental sanitation (ES) on the environment, economy, public health, and livelihoods, various efforts are constantly being made in countries all over the world, particularly by their governments, to regulate public behaviour to conform to acceptable sanitation standards. However, public compliance with sanitation regulations is low in Ghana, culminating in the lowering of the country’s international image in recent years as far as sanitation is concerned. The study examined the phenomenon of low public compliance with ES regulations in Ghana. Qualitative data were collected from purposively selected experts and key informants in ES management, using in-depth interviews. Data were analysed using the thematic technique. The findings revealed that the low compliance phenomenon was due to ineffective law enforcement, inadequate public education and sanitation infrastructure, low capacity of implementing institutions, lenient penalties, and poor sanitation culture. Compliance management seemed linear in theory, as it appeared the government could simply compel everyone to comply; but in practice, it was a complex problem that required a multi-dimensional solution. The government and its implementing agencies should commit to strict law enforcement, provide adequate ES facilities, undertake intensive public education on sanitation, provide adequate funding, and build the capacity of the implementing institutions to enforce compliance. There was the need to strategically combine coercive and catalytic approaches to ensure compliance with the regulations. The study contributes to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6 — access to water, sanitation, and hygiene — in Ghana. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:00:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8bef217e446a48b0a105d5e947e7617e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2544-9826 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:00:35Z |
| publishDate | 2022-02-01 |
| publisher | De Gruyter |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Open Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-8bef217e446a48b0a105d5e947e7617e2023-08-14T07:07:52ZengDe GruyterOpen Health2544-98262022-02-013111210.1515/openhe-2022-0001Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in GhanaMensah Justice0Mattah Precious Agbeko D.1Amoah John Oti2Mattah Memuna Mawusi3Directorate of Academic Planning and Quality Assurance, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana, e-mail: jmensah@ucc.edu.ghCentre for Coastal Management, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, GhanaCentre for Gender Research, Advocacy, and Documentation, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, GhanaDepartment of Environment and Development Studies, Central University, Accra, GhanaDue to the negative impacts of poor environmental sanitation (ES) on the environment, economy, public health, and livelihoods, various efforts are constantly being made in countries all over the world, particularly by their governments, to regulate public behaviour to conform to acceptable sanitation standards. However, public compliance with sanitation regulations is low in Ghana, culminating in the lowering of the country’s international image in recent years as far as sanitation is concerned. The study examined the phenomenon of low public compliance with ES regulations in Ghana. Qualitative data were collected from purposively selected experts and key informants in ES management, using in-depth interviews. Data were analysed using the thematic technique. The findings revealed that the low compliance phenomenon was due to ineffective law enforcement, inadequate public education and sanitation infrastructure, low capacity of implementing institutions, lenient penalties, and poor sanitation culture. Compliance management seemed linear in theory, as it appeared the government could simply compel everyone to comply; but in practice, it was a complex problem that required a multi-dimensional solution. The government and its implementing agencies should commit to strict law enforcement, provide adequate ES facilities, undertake intensive public education on sanitation, provide adequate funding, and build the capacity of the implementing institutions to enforce compliance. There was the need to strategically combine coercive and catalytic approaches to ensure compliance with the regulations. The study contributes to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6 — access to water, sanitation, and hygiene — in Ghana.https://doi.org/10.1515/openhe-2022-0001public compliancelaw enforcementenvironmental sanitationsustainable developmentsanitation regulations |
| spellingShingle | Mensah Justice Mattah Precious Agbeko D. Amoah John Oti Mattah Memuna Mawusi Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in Ghana Open Health public compliance law enforcement environmental sanitation sustainable development sanitation regulations |
| title | Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in Ghana |
| title_full | Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in Ghana |
| title_fullStr | Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in Ghana |
| title_full_unstemmed | Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in Ghana |
| title_short | Public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in Ghana |
| title_sort | public compliance with environmental sanitation regulations in ghana |
| topic | public compliance law enforcement environmental sanitation sustainable development sanitation regulations |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1515/openhe-2022-0001 |
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