Local Government Minister, Julius Debrah, has commended Chiefs in the Northern Region for their efforts to make the nationwide cleaning exercise successful.

He said chiefs in the region have been appealing to their subjects to join the nationwide cleaning exercise, as the region hosts the monthly exercise today.

The Minister and his Deputy, Nii Lante Vanderpuye, have been in Tamale with boxers Ayittey Powers and Bukom Banku all week in a bid to whip up support for the exercise. 

The National Sanitation Day started on November 1, 2014 as a nationwide cleaning activity to be held simultaneously across the country.

In a strategic move, the exercise is now hosted by one of the 10 regions, which according to the Local Government Ministry is aimed at providing an opportunity for the ministry to know the peculiar environmental challenges in the host regions in order to deal with them adequately.

Mr. Debrah told  Joy News' Martina Bugri Saturday the endorsement by chiefs in the region has been the reason for the success in today’s exercise.

"In fact in Yendi, the Regent gave a white smock and he says it signifies cleanliness and that so long as he has given that smock, he believes that the objective of trying to keep Ghana clean would be achieved", the Minister said.

He added that some chiefs even postponed their trips to enable them take part in the exercise.

On non-collection of waste after the event, which has been an issue in previous cleaning exercises, the Minister said a pilot programme involving the prisons service and other private bodies has been put in place to ensure no waste is left behind after the programme.

"The idea is that these people would start working from 11am, and they will concentrate mainly on left over debris and garbages that is usually removed from the gutters", the Minister explained.