CONIWAS commends government for 20% DACF for WASH

The Ghana Coalition of Non-Governmental Organizations in Water and Sanitation (CONIWAS) has commended the Government of Ghana for landmark interventions demonstrating deepening political commitment to the WASH sector, even as it demands a formal statutory mechanism for government-civil society engagement.

In her welcome address at the 37th MOLE WASH Conference at Aqua Safari Resort, Ada Foah, Chairperson Dr. Beata Awinpoka Akanyani, listed four major interventions worth commendation.

The conference is being held on the theme "Accelerating Climate-Resilient WASH Service Delivery for Last-Mile Communities: Options, Strategies, and Actions," building on deliberations of MOLE XXXVI.

The Media Coalition Against Open Defecation (M-CODe), through the empowerment of World Vision Ghana, is providing a strategic and targeted communication platform for the conference, ensuring national visibility and citizen engagement.

First, the decision to raise the District Assemblies Common Fund allocation for WASH to 20 per cent, with 10 per cent for potable water and 10 per cent for environmental sanitation.

“This bold step recognizes the central role that local government must play in improving WASH outcomes,” she said.

Second, the securing of a €323 million financing package, led by the European Investment Bank, for the Northern Ghana Water and Sanitation Project, which will address long-standing water shortages in Tamale, Yendi, and Damongo in the Northern and Savannah Regions, benefiting more than 1.4 million people, and will support fecal sludge treatment in Wa, Bolgatanga, and Yendi.

“We look forward to its timely implementation and to the tangible benefits it will bring to communities,” she said.

Third, the sustaining of the National Sanitation Day across the country by the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy, and Religious Affairs, mobilizing citizens, traders, and assemblies, and contributing to cleaner surroundings.

Fourth, she particularly acknowledged Mr. Mahama Ayariga, Minister for Local Government, for championing the evacuation of the decades-old waste heap at Agbogbloshie under the National Emergency Waste Evacuation Exercise commissioned by President John Dramani Mahama, with approximately one million tonnes of waste being cleared.

“This demonstrates what decisive political leadership can achieve for urban sanitation,” she noted.

Dr. Akanyani also commended sector ministries for convening periodic Technical Working Groups and the Ministry of Works, Housing, and Water Resources for involving civil society in preparations for the UN Water Conference and the Parliamentary Select Committee on Sanitation and Water Resources for its oversight role in monitoring use of DACF for water and sanitation.

On CONIWAS advocacy in 2026, she said the Coalition renewed engagement with the Parliamentary Select Committee, advocating increased WASH financing, a comprehensive Water Services Act, the establishment of a National Sanitation Authority supported by a Sanitation Fund, and approval of the revised Environmental Sanitation Policy.

She said advocacy is yielding results, with the Committee indicating support for the Authority and Fund and inviting CONIWAS to submit evidence, following earlier advocacy that contributed to tax relief on sanitary pads.

Other actions included collaboration with the Ministry of Works, Housing, and Water Resources for the UN Water Conference and public awareness through World Water Day, Menstrual Hygiene Day, Day of the African Child, and Global Handwashing Day.

Others include validation with WaterAid of a WASH budget-tracking study covering 2024–2026 and coordination of Ghana WASH Week 2026 under the theme “From Commitment to Action: A Unified WASH Agenda.”

It also covers research with Water Witness International on water security in cocoa- and gold-producing areas of Upper Denkyira East and capacity development of 66 member organizations in proposal writing through the Sida CLIMB project with WaterAid Ghana.

Despite progress, Dr. Akanyani raised concern about deteriorating government-civil society engagement.

“During the past year, meaningful and consistent engagement between civil society and sector ministries, departments, and agencies has been difficult. At a time when Ghana needs every available resource and perspective, this gap deserves urgent attention,” she said.

She singled out the Joint WASH Sector Working Group, the sector’s principal platform for coordination, which has not been convened since January 2025.

“Its absence has stalled sector coordination and interrupted the regular updates the sector provides to the Chair and Co-Chair Ministers. We respectfully urge the government to reconvene the Joint Sector Working Group without further delay and to restore a regular schedule of meetings.”

“Civil society is not a peripheral actor in national development. CONIWAS members deliver services in hard-to-reach areas, support district assemblies, mobilize resources, engage citizens, and generate evidence. Our appeal is not for occasional invitations or for consultation only during emergencies. It is for predictable and meaningful participation in the decisions that shape the sector,” she stressed.

She therefore called for a formal, statutory mechanism for structured engagement between government and civil society in WASH planning, budgeting, implementation, monitoring, and review, with an agreed engagement calendar, clear responsibilities, and transparent follow-up.

“This is not a call for privilege; it is a call for effective partnership in the national interest,” she said.

Dr. Akanyani expressed appreciation to the CONIWAS Executive Committee, MOLE XXXVII Planning Committee, and Secretariat led by Executive Secretary Basilia Nanbigne, Government, donors, and sponsors including UNICEF, EU-SWA, WaterAid Ghana, RIVA Ghana, WSUP, CRS, World Vision Ghana, SAHA Global, SNV, and ESPA, and the chiefs and people of Ada for their hospitality.

She also celebrated the Afram Plains Development Organisation (APDO) on its 40th anniversary, acknowledging its visionary leader, Mr. A.Y.O. Modoc, for “dedication and enduring belief in the power of small but purposeful actions to bring about meaningful and sustainable change.”