Disposal of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) in ditches and streams is a common practice in developingcountries and this contributes to environmental health problems. Although composting of MSW and itsuse as fertilizer is one of the sustainable pathways to manage MSW, improve environmental health andincrease agricultural productivity, it is yet to be well developed as a successful business. This studyanalyzes the challenges and opportunities of the MSW composting business in the Tamale area, Ghana,by exploring a case study. DeCo! is a NGO - that produces compost from MSW and other agro-industrialwaste in Tamale. DeCo-compost is rich with plant nutrients (4.7 gN, 0.85gP, and 1gK per kg of compost)and no health risks have been reported. DeCo-compost+mineral fertilizer produced significantly higher(P<0.0001) yields of maize (3.3±0.7 tons/ha) compared to that which was produced by control (0.45±0.2tons/ha) or using mineral fertilizer (2.2±0.6 tons/ha).
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