Integrating multicriteria decision-making to prioritise sustainable sanitation technology options for low-income communities in Ghana

Abstract

Affordable and sustainable sanitation technologies are vital for protecting public health and supporting progress toward achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6.2. Sanitation technology choices in Ghana often depend on anecdotal experiences or project-specific guidelines rather than evidence-based evaluation frameworks. This study used a multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) method to evaluate and prioritise sanitation options for low-income communities in Ghana. Four sustainability dimensions and twenty-eight associated indicators were used to design a structured questionnaire. Afterwards, ten (10) experts were purposively selected to assess six (6) sanitation technology options (water closet with septic tank, water closet with biodigester, pour flush connected to leach pit, composting toilet, Kumasi ventilated improved pit latrine (KVIP), and single-pit ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrine) using a structured questionnaire. The data were analysed using three weighting methods (CRITIC, Entropy, and No-priority) combined with three MCDM methods (EDAS, TOPSIS, and MOORA). The results show significantly divergent rankings based on the weighting method and MCDM approach. The strongest positive correlation (perfect) was observed between CRITIC + EDAS and Entropy + TOPSIS combinations. The water closet connected to the septic tank emerged as the most sustainable option, followed by the KVIP latrine. The other technology options were ranked in the order: pour flush connected to leach pits > composting toilet > water closet connected to biodigester. The single-pit VIP latrine ranked least. The findings provide evidence-based insights into the comparative performance of sanitation technology options for low-income areas in Ghana. The study demonstrates the value of structured MCDM approaches in guiding policymakers toward sustainable, context-appropriate solutions.