By Kekeli K. Blamey
Bakpo (V/R), April 17, GNA – International Needs Ghana has commissioned a modern water system at Bakpo in the South Tongu Municipality of the Volta Region to address longstanding challenges in access to safe drinking water.
The project, funded with support from International Needs USA, is expected to improve access to clean water and reduce water-related diseases in the community.
Mr Cromwell Awadey, Executive Director of International Needs Ghana, said access to clean water remained a fundamental human right and a key driver of health, dignity, and socio-economic development.
He noted that millions of people worldwide still relied on unsafe water sources, citing World Health Organization data indicating about 106 million people depended on untreated surface water.
He said Ghana’s data shows about 12 per cent of the population relies on unimproved water sources, while in the Volta Region about 15 per cent have limited access, with nearly 30 per cent of rural South Tongu residents depending on surface water.
Mr Awadey said the situation affects education, productivity and health, as children often miss school and households spend significant time fetching water.
He explained that the intervention followed a 2025 request from Bakpo chiefs and elders, after which assessments confirmed residents were using unsafe sources, including abandoned quarry pits and shared water points with animals.
“In response, we drilled boreholes at Bakpo and Kpodzadzi communities in late 2025. However, water quality tests showed high iron content, necessitating a treatment system for Bakpo,” he said.
The facility, valued at GHS 117,000, includes a mechanised borehole, water storage tanks, a three-tap fetching point, and drainage with soak-away infrastructure.
It also features an automated treatment system with sand, iron removal and carbon filtration units to ensure safe, odourless water.
Mr Awadey said the community contributed an existing platform and tank, which was upgraded to include an additional 6,000-litre capacity tank.
He added that a Water and Sanitation (WATSAN) Committee would be trained to manage the facility to ensure sustainability and community ownership.
The South Tongu Municipal Chief Executive, Victoria Dzeklo, praised International Needs Ghana for the intervention and urged residents to maintain the facility through responsible use and ownership.
Community leaders and residents expressed gratitude, pledging to protect the facility, support the WATSAN Committee, and ensure its long-term sustainability.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah /Audrey Dekalu