Former President John Mahama, flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has recently presented an extensive plan aimed at dealing with the water supply challenges in Accra.
The unveiling of this strategy comes at a crucial time when Accra faces mounting water shortages, a challenge attributed by Ghana Water Limited to the city’s rapidly growing population.
During his address to the regional house of chiefs as part of his Building Ghana Tour, Mahama emphasized the urgent need for proactive measures to address the pressing water crisis.
In his speech, Mahama highlighted the alarming pace of urbanization in Accra, which has significantly strained the city’s water resources.
He stressed the importance of adopting a forward-looking approach to water management to ensure sustainable access to this vital resource. While acknowledging the progress made in augmenting water capacity during the tenure of Professor Mills and his own administration, Mahama also noted a stagnation in expansion efforts in subsequent years, exacerbating the challenges posed by rapid urban growth.
Mahama’s remarks underscored the imperative for long-term planning and investment in water infrastructure to meet the escalating demands of Accra’s burgeoning population.
John Mahama Speaking on Water Supply Challenges in Accra and Ghana at Large
We also want to expand water supply to Accra. Accra is going very fast. Recently, the Ghana Water Company complained that they can’t keep up with the supply of water because of the fast expansion of water. What you do is you plan ahead, and that is what we did.
Between Professor Mills’ time and my time, we added 40 million gallons of water to Accra’s water supply. In the last eight years, there has not been a single drop expansion in Accra’s water supply. So why do you expect that the water will be enough?
This is a city that is growing. And so after we added 40 million gallons, at least in eight years, you should have added another 20 million gallons. We have started planning ahead already that when we come into office, we are going to increase the water supply to Accra. He remarked.
