Community Participation in Ghana’s decentralized Solid Waste Management Policy: Bridging the Gap Between Implementation and Policy Formulation
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Decentralized approaches to solid waste management (SWM) have gained global attention because of their provision for the effective participation of local communities. This study investigates community participation in decentralized solid waste management policy-making processes, drawing insights from Ghana. Using mixed methods, the study reveals that community participation only takes place at the policy implementation stage and takes the form of planning and managing community-led solid waste management initiatives such as occasional community clean-up exercise during festivals and public holidays, which are usually organized on a frequent basis. Regarding the factors that promote the solid waste management policy-making process, it was realized that “including the community in the solid waste management policy-making process” was the most important factor for the community to participate in the solid waste management policy-making process. Based on these findings, the top-down approach in solid waste management policy should be reversed to bottom-up approaches.