The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Ebo Barton-Odro, has called for action to end open defecation along beaches in the Central Region, following a warning by UNICEF that it would take Ghana about 500 years to end the problem.

According to Barton-Odro, the country cannot make strides in improving tourism if it cannot keep its tourist sites, especially beaches, clean.

“The statistics from authorities indicate that Ghana placed second in cholera rankings in West Africa in 2015 with 28,944 cases and 204 deaths.

“It is even more worrying to hear that the unwillingness to stop pen defecation in areas like cape coast Elmina and so n which are designated tourist enclaves with grate potential for revenue generation is something that is very disturbing.”

He was speaking at an on-going capacity building organised by the Presidential Press Corps on the menace of open defecation in the Central Region.

With summer around the corner, many holiday makers from Europe and the US may be looking at tourist destinations on offer so as to decide where to throw their budget, he said.

"One crucial factor in determining to go is not only a safe destination but also a clean environment.”

The event is under the theme “Open defecation – A menace in Ghana”, and is being sponsored by UNICEF.