The Oti Region is battling a surge in typhoid fever cases, with over 10,000 confirmed infections recorded in the first half of 2025.
Health officials say the outbreak is being driven by poor sanitation, inadequate waste management and limited access to clean drinking water, putting several communities at risk.
Data from the Regional Health Directorate shows that 4,417 cases were recorded in the first quarter of the year, followed by 5,816 in the second.
In response, a sanitation task force has been launched to lead clear-up operations, improve waste disposal and roll out safe water initiatives aimed at containing the spread.
Regional Environmental Health Officer, Cynthia Sekyere said the Regional Council from the beginning of 2025 engaged in six months intensified hygiene education in the Region to sensitise residents.
“It is true that Oti Region being one of the newly created Regions is currently having a high prevalent rate of typhoid fever. Per last year review from the Ghana Health Service, it puts the Regional Council from its current state of which we have to take decision on this communicable disease and more especially with the typhoid cases as a result of poor sanitation practices.
“As part of it we were able to identify the contributing factors and we saw the need to have a taskforce to enforce the law. We are intensified hygiene and self-education across the Region for six months and we feel some people have still not respond to good practices of sanitation. Enough have been done when it comes to hygiene education,” she noted in an interview on TV3’s News360, Tuesday.
According to her, law enforcement on hygienic practices has not been rigorous and the Council intends to enforce the laws henceforth through the Regional Environmental taskforce.
“We recognize that enough has not been done when it comes to law enforcement. Last year for instance we were able to serve 19 court summonses, out of the 19 only 8 complied with the summon, what happened to the rest?
“And so that is why we have the Regional Environmental taskforce and with this one, we are going to make sure that that gap we are going to enforce it to complement the hygiene education we have,” she added.
By Sarfoa Boahene
