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10.03.2017 Social News

Water still our problem - Abutia women

10.03.2017 LISTEN
By GNA

Abutia-Kloe, March 10, GNA - Women at Abutia-Kloe in the Ho West District said access to potable water remained their greatest challenge in the farming community.

The women said they walked several kilometres to fetch water from streams after one of the two boreholes provided by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) broke down.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency at a forum by the Department of Gender to mark this year's International Women's Day at Abutia-Kloe, the women said it was an odd spectacle to see girls and women going round the community and beyond in search of water around 0400 hours.

They said in most situations, they returned home at about 0900 hours with little or no water for use at home.

A middle-aged woman who spoke on anonymity said the problem was affecting their tie and dye and gari and oil processing businesses.

She said the situation was also affecting the education of girls who were tasked to search for water before and after school, some of whom fell prey to boys and men, increasing cases of teenage pregnancy in the community.

Madam Boateng Sitsofe Ama, Assemblywoman, Abutia-Kloe Electoral Area, said the over 3,000 people living within the area depended on one borehole.

Madam Sitsofe said those who fetched water from the streams had the laborious task of sieving and boiling the water to avoid contracting waterborne diseases.

Ms Comfort Ablormeti, Volta Regional Director of the Department of Gender expressed worry about the situation and called for the empowerment of rural women economically, so they could contribute more to national development.

The forum was themed, 'Economic Empowerment of Rural Women: A Tool for Sustainable Development in a Changing World of Work'.

GNA

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