The exercise is to ascertain their health status before certifying and licensing them to do business in the Municipality.

The purpose is to ensure food sellers and vendors stayed healthier and free from communicable diseases to prevent transmission to their patrons and other members of the public in the municipality and its environs.

Besides, it is meant to educate the vendors to keep their factories and selling points clean to prevent any form of diseases that may be transmittable to their innocent customers.

The Assembly has setup a well-equipped medical laboratory to screen the vendors and the results are expected to be released to the vendors in a confidential and professional manner.

Mr Joseph Bawa, Municipal Environmental Health Officer told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Bawku during the exercise on Thursday that since health was paramount in the dispensation of their daily activities, there was the need for the Assembly to ensure people practised good healthy life habits so as to keep alive the human resource in the area.

Mr Bawa explained that when any sick person sells food, the possibility of transmitting such diseases to the buyer was possible and that it could create an epidemic in the area when not handled properly.

He said the screening included; general body examination and blood tests, among others to ensure that the vendors were safe and met standards required to sell food to members of the public, adding that when the examination was completed and the seller passed the test, a certification is issued out to serve as an identification permitting them to sell food or drinks to the public.

Mr Bawa noted that even though the area was challenged with some environmental health problems such as poor sanitation, efforts were being made by the environmental health department of the Assembly to run public education on the need to practise good sanitation and clean-up exercise to keep the area clean.

He told the GNA that the Assembly recently re-launched the National Sanitation Day to remind residents on the need to come out and clean their environment every first Saturday of the month.

The Officer called on the people to cooperate with the Assembly to conduct the exercise as it would go a long way to create healthy living conditions and promote the socio-economic activities of the area and the country at large.