Franklin Cudjoe speaking at the event
The Executive Director of IMANI Center for Policy & Education, Franklin Cudjoe has called for private public partnership to solve the current water problem facing the country.
He said the inclusion of the private sector in the provision of the utility will help salvage the situation government has been grappling with for many years.
Making this known at the celebration of World Water Day on Friday in Accra, Mr Cudjoe stated: “Government is thinking through some of these problems but I think they need support from the private sector.”
According to him, Government’s total expenditure on water and sanitation was less than 0.5 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Although Government, in 2010, promised to allocate $350 million per annum in the national budget for water, sanitation and hygiene issues, during a high level sanitation meeting in Washington DC, it released only GH¢107.5 million.
In 2011, it was GH¢132.2, which translated into 0.34 per cent of GDP.
“Right now, we need about GH¢ 1 billion of which 250 million is needed by the community water and sanitation unit to address the issue in the communities.
The United Nations (UN) has declared 2013 as the international year for Water Cooperation, seeking stakeholder involvement in the management and delivery of safe drinking water to all.
Speaking on the theme, Mr. Cudjoe said people in the rural communities lacked potable water, adding that IMANI field researchers discovered that in spite of the pressing water situation in communities like Kwahu North and Birim North districts, expenditure on Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) only make up averagely 5 per cent of the Internally Generated Fund (IGF).
“This makes it difficult to provide facilities such as boreholes pipe systems that would provide safe water for the communities. Also only 8 per cent of the planned programmes for the period under review were achieved,” he said.
Citing the 2011 statistics of Water Aid, Cudjoe said about 80 per cent of all diseases in Ghana were caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation, adding that more than 9 million people don’t have access to safe drinking water.
“Only around 13 per cent of the population has access to adequate sanitation facilities,” he said.
He suggested Government should find money and invest in the expansion of water systems with community participation.
He also called on the districts to be given the autonomy to solve their water problems at their level.
“One of the best ways to solve this is financing,” he stated.
Posts
