By Kodjo Adams, GNA
Accra, April 17, GNA – Mr Leonard Shang-Quartey, Coordinator, African Water Justice, a civil society group has urged the government to invest more resources in the water sector to improve the well-being of the citizenry.
He said the lack of financial commitment to the sector had contributed to challenges in the sector with regard to broken water systems in the urban and rural areas.
Mr Shang-Quartey said this on Thursday at the launch of the Ghana Water Justice campaign in Accra, organised by the Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC), a civil society organisation.
The campaign seeks to lead in mobilising citizens’ voices to have affordable and equal access to water.
He expressed concern about the government’s unattained targets on water.
“The target of 2024 small-town community water systems was not achieved. “In 2025, we had a target of about 48 rehabilitation of small-town water systems, of which only eight were done.”
He said proper investment in the water sector would help address issues of health related diseases, school activities and other sectors.
Mr Shang-Quartey said the sector was faced with significant underutilisation of budget, rural infrastructure delays and rising environmental threats like illegal mining, calling for urgent attention.
He urged the government to create a central groundwater database and promote a shared community borehole system to ensure inclusivity in the delivery of water.
Mr Shang-Quartey charged the government to upgrade the treatment of plants with advanced filtration and ensure public disclosure of water quality compliance audits.
Mr Samson Danse, the Executive Director, ISODEC, said the campaign started in 2004, but there was the need to sustain the initiative in ensuring that duty bearers played their role efficiently.
That, he stated, was important because water played a key role in the survival of mankind and must be accessible and affordable for all.
He said the ISODEC and its partners would continue to advocate for water as a fundamental human right rather than a commodity.
Mr Danse said the country’s social service delivery with regards to water was poor, urging the citizens to rise up and demand their rights to quality drinking water.
Mr Geoffrey Ocanssey, Chairman, ISODEC, said the campaign was a protest against water injustice, stressing that the Network would work to ensure that water was treated not as a commodity but as a basic human right.
He called for sustained measures to make water affordable for all, especially for low-income and vulnerable households.
The need for investment in water infrastructure, he said, was necessary to extend services to underserved communities.
GNA
Kenneth Odeng Adade