Ghana spends $20 million on community water and sanitation

Akosombo, Aug 01, GNA - Ms Cecilia Dapaah, the Deputy Minister of Works and Housing, has said Ghana spends 20 million dollars annually on community water and sanitation instead of the required 67 million dollars.

Ms Dapaah was opening a three-day forum for members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Water and Sanitation, board members and management and staff of Community Water and Sanitation CWSA), some ministers of state and the media at Akosombo on Saturday. She said her ministry has put together a comprehensive National Water Policy that would soon be placed before cabinet.

The policy covers how to ensure greater access to water and sanitation, affordability, improved service delivery and ensuring cost recovery while taking into consideration the need to address the interest of the poor.

She said the improvement of the water sector was important for the success of the Millennium Development Goals.

Ms Dapaah called for collaboration with all sectors especially the ministries of Local Government and Rural Development, Health, Education and Finance and Economic Planning to ensure that water and sanitation interventions impact on health, education and the living conditions of the Ghanaian.

Mr Kofi Asamoah, the Chief Executive of CWSA, said one of the major challenges facing the outfit was the low budgetary support.

Other challenges include non-conformity of some NGOs to the national strategy and the requirement that the beneficiary community should pay five per cent of the cost of the project as community contribution.