NDA hands over boreholes, alleviates plights of communities in Upper West

The Northern Development Authority (NDA) has constructed and handed over three boreholes to three communities in the Upper West Region to help alleviate the plights of community members in accessing potable water.

The boreholes, hand-pumped, came in handy to solve long-standing water challenges that the residents of the communities were grappling with and fulfill the Sustainable Development Goal Six (SDG 6) – clean water and sanitation for all.

The beneficiary communities of the three boreholes, which were among several others commissioned and yet to be commissioned, included Kaleo, Kparisaga, and Maanyateng in the Nadowli-Kaleo, Wa East and Wa West Districts respectively.

Speaking at a brief ceremony to hand over the borehole at Kaleo, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the NDA, Lawyer Sulley Sambian said the NDA was committed to promoting the socioeconomic wellbeing of the people of Northern Ghana to enable them live meaningful and dignified lives.

He said it was in the light of this commitment that the NDA drilled the borehole to assuage the thirst of the people and ensure ease of access to clean water for domestic and micro-industrial use.

He indicated that the plight of the people of Kaleo was brought to the attention of the NDA by the parliamentary candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr. Francis-Xavier Kambotuu, who was a son of the soil.

Lawyer Sambian urged the community members to put the borehole to good use and ensure it last its lifespan and continue to serve the needs of the people.

He admonished the community members to set up a committee to take charge of the maintenance of the borehole, saying that some members of the community should be trained to undertake basic maintenance and repair works on the borehole.

Lawyer Sambian entreated the people to exercise discernment and vote for the Vice President and NPP's presidential candidate, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, whom he described as visionary and progressive, in the upcoming general elections.

On his part, Mr. Kambotuu thanked the NDA for paying a listening ear to his plea and promptly addressing the concern of the people by providing the borehole.

"I, on behalf of the people of Nadowli-Kaleo, want to say a big thank you to you for listening to our cry, it's not everybody that you would cry to that would certainly come to your aid, but you have done that within a short period that we've cried to you that some communities within the constituency are in dire need of water, and you've done so well by giving us the first five.

"Of course, the rest of the four are all sited in communities that really, really need water and that is going to help the people [and] we've done so regardless of party colours," he said.

Mr. Kambotuu assured that the boreholes would be put to good use under high culture of maintenance to ensure they serve the intended purpose.

The members of the community expressed appreciation to the NDA as they indicated that the borehole would help them to easily access potable water without sweat.

"Anytime the only borehole here breaks down, we are compelled to buy water and most times, we don't have the money, so we have to resort to an age-old well to draw water," Madam Stellar Kungkamani, a resident, said.

"We used to cluster over the single borehole which breeds squabbles but it has recently broken down, it's even not repaired yet, because we don't have money to repair it. Now, with this borehole, we can heave a sigh of relief," another resident, Amina Amadu said.

Mr. Sumaila Bawuliyiri, also a resident, said "We were the repairers of the lone borehole and every now and then, we were always going to Wa to buy spare parts to repair it until we even became tired."

The boreholes were commissioned by the CEO in the company of the deputy CEO, Madam Janet Bibii Bashiru; the Upper West Regional Coordinator of the NDA, Madam Maria Johana Yuorpor; and a significant others.