The growing preference for tricycle waste collectors, popularly known as Aboboya operators, over approved waste management companies is contributing to the rise in illegal dumping sites in Accra and other major cities, the President of the Chamber for Local Government, Richard Fiadomor, has said.

According to him, although Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) have engaged registered waste management companies to provide sanitation services, many residents continue to rely on Aboboya operators because their services are cheaper.

Mr Fiadomor explained that the preference for low-cost waste collection options has created a challenge for effective waste disposal.

"The assemblies will enter into a franchise agreement with the waste management operator to operate within a demarcated area within a particular MMDA. The assembly will come up with a fee-setting resolution so that the private company will not charge arbitrarily for the services they are going to render to the citizens. They can charge less than that but not above what the assembly has approved,

Some citizens who have used the services of these franchise companies have now 'quote and unquote' fallen in love with these Aboboya operators who are undercutting the prices of their services far less than the fee chosen resolution that has been approved by the assembly. So what do we see? We have seen that much of the waste is carried by these Aboboya collectors; unfortunately, they do not have what it takes to go to the long distances where some of the landfill sites are located," he disclosed on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Wednesday during a discussion on “Ghana’s Sanitation Problems”.

Mr Fiadomor noted that, although the assemblies have the authority to stop their operations in the waste management sector, it has become difficult to do so because waste generators prefer their services.

"Because these people (Aboboya operators) are doing this in connivance with the citizens, I generated my waste, and if a Zoomlion truck comes and I decide not to give it to the Zoomlion truck, they cannot do anything to me. So I wait, and when the Aboboya comes, then I give it to them, so that one, it is difficult for the assemblies to stamp their authority on this particular issue."

He said addressing the country’s sanitation challenges requires a collective effort from residents, waste management companies and local authorities, particularly in encouraging the use of regulated waste collection services.

His comments come amid increasing concerns over illegal dumping sites in the capital, which have exposed communities living around such areas to health risks and possible disease outbreaks.

The concerns have been heightened following recent flooding in Accra, where several waste materials were washed away by floodwaters, raising fresh concerns about the impact of poor sanitation practices on public health and urban resilience.