By Franklin ASARE-DONKOH
The Managing Director (MD) of the Ghana Water Company Limited, (GWCL) Ing. Dr. Clifford Braimah, has stated that the population of Accra has outgrown the capacity of the water distribution company.
Ing. Braimah made this comment when addressing the issue of inconsistent water supply in an interview on an Accra-based Citi FM on Monday, January 22, 2024.
Ing. Braimah acknowledged the need for the GWCL to upgrade its machinery to meet the increasing demands of Accra’s residents.
“Already in Accra, the volume of water we produce, the population has outgrown it, and we are looking at putting up a new system at Kpone to boost our production but resource constraint has been the problem, since 2017, 2018, we have been working and we have not settled on finances.
So already if you have a limited volume of water coming into the system, and your population is big, you have to block them and supply them according to the demands of the people but you cannot give everybody water at the same time otherwise some will not get it. And so we have been limited for a very long time.” The MD of GWCL explained.
Ing. Braimah, also admitted that some areas have irregularities in supply were related to localized faults, which, when reported to the nearest GWCL office, could be addressed promptly.
Most communities in the region especially the new settlements have been battling with acute and perineal water crises for years without any hope in sight.
Even old communities which hitherto do not have problems with water supply like Accra central, La, Dansoman among many others are recently having irregular water supply which has affected residents adversely.
Most residents complained the irregular flow of water has impacted their daily lives negatively forcing some to resort to purchasing water from tankers at exorbitant prices.
Some residents say Ghana’s water distribution company has failed to communicate plans for temporary water supply cuts in specific communities, with some reporting an absence of water for nearly a year.
