A privately built sanitation facility in one of Accra’s busiest trading areas is meant to give traders and commuters a proper alternative to street corners.
Traders, commuters and residents around Tudu in central Accra now have a new public toilet and bathhouse, as the Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly (KoKMA) pushes to cut down on open urination in one of the city's busiest commercial pockets.
The facility was inaugurated on Wednesday. It was built by a private company, St. Philips Enterprise, and has 17 toilet seats plus a bathhouse. The Assembly says it should take some of the load off the few existing sanitation points serving Tudu and the communities around it.
Why Tudu
Tudu sits at the heart of Accra's trading and transport corridor, with heavy foot traffic from lorry stations, shops and markets. That kind of daily crowd puts pressure on public toilets, and where facilities are few, people improvise.
KoKMA's Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Alfred Allotey-Gaisie, linked the problem directly to supply. He said the shortage of proper toilets in some parts of the municipality feeds indiscriminate urination and other sanitation problems. A Municipal Chief Executive is the central government's appointed head of a local assembly, responsible for services such as waste management and sanitation.
Mr Allotey-Gaisie argued that government alone cannot close the gap, and that partnership with private investors is necessary where public infrastructure has not kept pace with the population. He said the Tudu project shows what private initiative can deliver when it is properly planned and supported, and he wants it repeated in other communities in the municipality.
He also made the point that Ghana is capable of matching sanitation standards seen elsewhere in the world, provided the resources and partnerships are put together.
The developer's side
The Chief Executive Officer of St. Philips Enterprise, Philip Danquah, said the aim was a cleaner and healthier environment for people living and working in the area. He said the poor sanitation he met when he first settled in the community pushed him to act.
Mr Danquah framed the project as more than cosmetic. In his view, sanitation is tied to the general well-being of residents, not just to how the streets look. He said that if given another opportunity, he would take on more community development work in the area.
What it means
For Ghanaians abroad who send money home or own property and businesses in central Accra, projects like this are a small window into how local assemblies are now financing basic services: increasingly through private developers who build and operate facilities, rather than through assembly budgets alone.
The source report does not state the cost of the Tudu facility, the user fees to be charged, or who will handle day-to-day maintenance. Those details will matter for whether the toilet stays functional beyond the opening ceremony.
Reported first by Ghanaian Times on 2026-09-18. This article was written for our readers based on that report. Follow the link for the original coverage.
