The Western Regional Coordinating Council (WRCC) has announced that starting Friday, December 13, 2024, food vendors in the region must have handwashing stations at their stalls or risk being barred from selling.
This directive is part of intensified measures to manage the ongoing cholera outbreak, which has already recorded 789 suspected cases and eight deaths as of December 7, 2024.
Speaking on ABC In The Morning on Thursday, December 12, Regional Environmental Health Analyst Oliver Cromwell emphasized the importance of the directive.
“We are telling food vendors to use handwashing facilities. This time, it is compulsory in the Western Region. Without the handwashing facility, you cannot sell. From Friday, if you don’t have a handwashing facility beside you, you will not be allowed to sell your foods,” he stated.
In addition to the handwashing directive, the WRCC is addressing sanitation concerns by partnering with Zoomlion to evacuate refuse scattered across the metropolis.
Cromwell highlighted the council’s ongoing engagements with food vendors to discuss the ban on vegetable sales and plans to expand these discussions to other communities.
He appealed to corporate bodies for support in cleaning the environment, reiterating that 95% of cholera cases in the region are linked to food and vegetables sold by vendors.
“We need to monitor the measures for the next five days to ensure they are effective. If we adhere to all these directions, the cases will definitely come down,” he added.
