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Roundup: UNICEF engages Ghanaian artists on campaign against open defecation

Xinhua, September 29, 2016 Adjust font size:

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF)'s Ghana office, in partnership with the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD), on Wednesday premiered an art exhibition in Accra to address issues pertaining to open defecation.

The exhibition is the work of 21 artists using varied visual art forms to address open defecation under the "Let's talk sh*t" project, which aims at focusing attention on matters using informal words.

Various mediums of fine arts such as painting, sculpture, photography, installation, videography and theatre are being used to show how shitting outside designated toilets threaten public health and balloons government budget on dealing with poor sanitation.

The Minister of LGRD, Collins Dauda, said he was extremely happy to see how the creative artworks produced could significantly address the issues of open defecation in Ghana.

He said this initiative added value to the government's program on the elimination of open defecation.

Statistics indicate that about 5 million Ghanaians defecate in the open and 43 percent of schools are not equipped with proper sanitation facilities or do not even have water.

According to the education management information system, more than two in five basic schools in Ghana have no toilets.

According to the WHO, 3600 children under-five die annually in Ghana from diarrhea.

Susan Namondo Ngongi, Representative of UNICEF Ghana, which is spearheading the campaign in collaboration with the Alliance Francaise in Accra, said while the title of the program might sound shocking to some people, it was expected to generate attention and initiate a dialogue on the issue.

The Director of the Alliance Française, Frederic Dart, said the program would provide the artist community with a great opportunity to show that their role was not about "decoration" or beauty but about engaging on social issues.

"This collaboration demonstrates that visual art can contribute to arouse critical thinking and place this issue into the public sphere," said Dart.

In November, the artists will take the exhibition on tour to three selected communities practicing open defecation in Accra to generate a dialogue directly with the people. Endit