By Abigail Sommutaar
Kusele, (UW/R), Nov. 1, GNA – The Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV) Ghana and its partners have commissioned a total of 47 water facilities in the Upper West Region to enhance access to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in the region.
Twenty-four of the water facilities were also constructed in partnership with the Helmsley Charitable Trust under the Healthy Future for All (HF4A) project in the Lambussie and Nandom Municipalities.
The remaining 23 were provided in the Lambussie, Lawra and Nandom Municipalities under the Building Climate Adaptation Capacities (BCAC) project through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit’s (GIZ) Resilience Against Climate Change (REACH), a component of the European Union Ghana Agriculture Programme.
The facilities would help reduce the vulnerabilities of the beneficiary communities, especially women and girls and build the resilience of those communities against climate change.
They would also contribute to Ghana’s efforts towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 6 on Clean Water and Sanitation and Goal 13 on Climate Action.
Speaking at the commissioning of one of the 47 boreholes at Kusele in the Lambussie District, Madam Theresa Swanzy Baffoe, the Project Manager for the HF4A and BCAC, observed that the facilities would transcend clean water provision to improve health, education, and livelihoods.
They would not only serve as sources for potable drinking water for communities, but also drivers of children’s retention in school, improve hygiene at health facilities and save women from walking long distances in search of water for their families.
Madam Baffoe emphasised that access to clean water should never be taken for granted as clean water formed an integral part of human existence.
“A single drop of clean water can mean the difference between health and sickness or between learning and missing school,” she stated.
She commended the opinion leaders and community members for their cooperation in the projects implementation and appealed for their continued collaboration to ensure the sustainability of the facilities.
Mr Mathias Berthold, Team Leader of the REACH project, indicated that the success of the project represented resilience, and the importance of partnership and collective community action in addressing community problems.
He commended the partnership between GIZ, SNV Ghana and the beneficiary communities for the success of the project and said it showed that much could be achieved if communities, local authorities, and development partners work together.
Mr Charles Lwanga Puozuing, the Upper West Regional Minister, praised SNV Ghana and its partners for complementing government efforts toward achieving the SDGs, especially SDG 6 on “Ensuring the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by 2030.”
“This project does not only provide water but also improves the quality of life, especially for children who now live and learn in cleaner environments,” he said.
Mr Puozuing encouraged beneficiary communities to take ownership of the water facilities and maintain them properly to ensure their longevity.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/Lydia Kukua Asamoah