The Ministerial Advisory Board and the Audit Committee of the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources were jointly inaugurated by the Sector Minister Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah on Friday February 22, 2019.

The Advisory Board is made up of six members whiles the Audit Committee is made up of four (4) members. The Chairperson for the joint board is the Sector Minister Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah.

The Advisory Board: In her speech, the Sector Minister reminded the members of the Advisory Board of its responsibility of promoting constant interaction between the Ministry and users of its services and also advising the Sector on adjustments in policy planning and operational strategies

Audit Committee: The Audit Committee on the other hand is to ensure that all audit reports are thoroughly implemented by management. In the light of the above, Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah noted that the success or failure of the Ministry in delivering on its mandate to a large extent depends on how well the two bodies perform their functions.

The Sector Minister was however hopeful that the two will succeed in their task owing to the rich experience, diverse background, skills, and knowledge which formed the basis of their selection. She assured them of the Ministry’s preparedness to offer them the needed support in their performance of their responsibilities.

The establishment of the two bodies is in the strength of the Civil Service Law, 1993 PNDCL 327 and the Public Financial Management Act 2016, Act 981 respectively. These laws require every Ministry to establish the bodies to perform their functions. The members of the Advisory Board are:

1. Michael Gyato – (MP) Deputy Minister
2. Patrick Boamah – (MP) Deputy Minister
3. Clifford Braimah – (MD) Ghana Water Company Limited
4. Joseph Amoah – Director, F&A, MSWR
5. Bertha Dartey

The membership of the Audit Committee consist of

1. Alex Isaac Darko
2. Joseph Amoah
3. Obeng Poku
4. Wilfred Addo

Nelson Kofi Akatey

The Government’s vision to extend safe and portable water supply to all parts of the country is yielding positive results.

The major boost to this programme was the commissioning of one such borehole at Suhum in the Eastern Region to mark the construction of 1,000 boreholes.

The Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah jointly commissioned the facility with the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana H. E. Shi Ting Wang. Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah commended the Chinese Government for the assistance.

The project is a 20 million Dollar project. The Chinese government is supporting Ghana for the provision of hand fitted boreholes to 500, 000 people in all the regions of Ghana.

She said the government is on course in providing portable and safe water to all the people of Ghana.

The programme forms part of the Economic and Technical cooperation Agreement signed between Ghana and China.

Ghana and Colombia are to pursue programmes in the WASH Sector in the spirit of South- South cooperation to promote the development of the two countries. To this end, Colombia is to construct a compost toilet facility in the various communities in Ghana to support the government’s programme of ending open defecation in the country.

These issues were discussed when the Colombian Ambassador to Ghana H.E. Claudia Turbay Quintero paid a courtesy call on the Sector Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah at her office on Friday, January 11, 2019

Mrs. Claudia Turbay Quintero said one of her priorities as an Ambassador is to explore areas of cooperation between Ghana and Colombia and also deepen the existing cordial relations between her country and Ghana. She said she was at the Ministry to brief the Sector Minister about the compost toilet technology which has been introduced in Colombia as a means of providing toilet facilities to the vulnerable segment of the population in Colombia. According to her, the toilet facility had impacted positively in Colombia and it is her desire to introduce the facility to Ghana to support the government’s programme of One Household, One Toilet which will go a long way to end open defecation in the country.

Mrs. Claudia Turbay Quintero said both Ghana and Colombia have a lot to learn from each other. She appealed to the Sector Minister Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah to identify the various communities that would require the use of the facility.

The Sector Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources commended Mrs. Claudia Turbay Quintero for her hard work and interest shown in the development of Ghana. Madam Cecilia Abena Dapaah also stressed the need to pursue the South-South Cooperation between Ghana and Colombia to share ideas for the development of both countries. Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah noted that the project would result into technology transfer into Ghana and also provide employment opportunities for the youth which is included in government’s flagship programmes.

Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah said both Ghana and Colombia are culturally linked together and therefore there was the need by both countries to share their experiences for their mutual benefits.

Provision of Household Toilet. The Sector Minister stated that sanitation is dignity and health. She therefore used the occasion to appeal to landlords and house owners to endeavor to provide toilet facilities for their tenants to demand toilets from their landlords.

Recycling Of Plastic Products. One important issue that was also discussed at the meeting was the recycling of plastic products as a way of ensuring environmental cleanliness. Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah indicated that a lot of companies have submitted proposals to go into the recycling of plastic products. She said the proposals are receiving attention and in due course the government will come out with a policy direction on it.

The GAMA Project. Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah disclosed that the GAMA Project under her Ministry has so far provided in excess of 15,000 Household Toilet facilities aimed at ending open defecation. She pledged the support of her Ministry in ensuring that the projects to be implemented by the Colombian government in Ghana are carried through. Present at the meeting were the Deputy Minister Hon. Patrick Boamah (MP), the Ag. Chief Director Mr. Joseph Obeng Poku, Directors and other senior staff of the Ministry.

Witten by
Nelson Kofi Akatey
PRO, MSWR

Introduction: The analysis of public opinion especially in the media space plays an important role in shaping policy direction and programmes of any organization. Public opinion constitutes a summation of public perception about the activities and programmes of an organization. It enables the organization therefore to develop appropriate policy programmes, media releases and actions in dealing with the issues that may be identified.

The case of Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources

Public Opinion generally about the establishment of the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources was good. Discussions on the media airwaves which were monitored commended the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo for the establishment of the Ministry in 2017. The same sentiments were shared in the public opinion poll (informal) in 2017. The generality of the public believed the sanitation issues will be dealt with by the Ministry if adequate resources and logistics are provided for the Ministry.

The Activities of the Ministry: The public opinion on the activities and programmes of the Ministry at the end of 2018 was a mixed one. Media programmes and discussions indicated that a section of the population especially in Accra were of the opinion that the Ministry was on track to deliver on its mandate.

However, it was also realized through the media reportage and survey that people were not satisfied with the performance of the Ministry on account of large volumes of refuse not collected daily which are visible along the streets. Secondly, there were illegal dumpsites especially in Accra and some other major cities. The Ministry at the last quarter of 2018 was taken to the cleaners in the media airspace for ‘apparently not performing’.

The Australian High Commissioner to Ghana for instance had to tweet on social media to complain about the heap of rubbish.

Response/reaction: The Ministry organized four (4) major media engagements at the Ministry to brief the media about the programmes and activities.

1. Interactive Media Talk Show Programmes: The Ministry also had series of interactive media talk show programmes. The media houses included the following:
2. Star Fm
3. GBC Radio
4. Metro TV
5. Peace Fm
6. Visit to Landfill Sites: The Ministry organized visits to Landfill sites following the media reportage to address the issues raised by the public.
7. Closure of illegal landfill sites at Mallam, Glefe and Adedenkpo
8. Clean up exercises were also carried by the Ministry.

Observation: The observation made for the from the public opinion through phone in programmes and other related media activities was that people could not distinguish between the mandate and role of the Ministry and that of the Implementing Agencies such as the ESPA group and the Assemblies.

The Sector Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah on Tuesday September 25, 2018 opened a Three Day Regional Training Workshop programme for the Water Sector in Accra. The programme under the auspices of UNESCO brought together participants from forty one (41) countries to deliberate on preserving and water bodies for posterity.

It was on the theme “Effective Management of water quality and Emerging Pollutants in Water and Waste Water in Sub- Saharan Africa: 1n her address, Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah stated that the government has established a monitoring team with the mandate of  ensuring and evaluating the quality of our water bodies. She called on the participants to make effective use of their research findings and bring the findings to bear on the national and regional efforts in the sustainability of our water bodies.

She encouraged the experts to share ideas during the three-day interaction.

Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah also called on the entire regional block to develop sustainable mechanisms for the management of water bodies.

These are photos from the workshop,

Hon. Cecilia Abena Dapaah delivering her speech at the function

The Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources on Friday August 24, 2018 featured at the Meet The – Press programme at the Conference Room of the Ministry of Information. The Meet The Pres programme is an interactive media engagement programme designed by the Ministry of Information to provide the opportunity and the platform for Ministries, Departments and Agencies to outline their policy programmes and achievements in furtherance of government policy programmes.

The presentation by the Ministry was led by the former Minister for the Sector Hon. Minister Joseph Kofi Adda.

Presentation

His major presentation focused on the success story of the Ministry since its establishment in 2017.

The key areas touched on include:

1. The Ministry has been able to secure four credit facilities through the approval of Cabinet and Parliament, totaling the sum of USD 149 million to undertake the business of the Sector.
2. The specific intervention projects targeted to be implemented include the Sustainable Rural Water and Sanitation Projects under the Community Water and Sanitation Agency in six (6) regions.
3. The Upper East Water Project at Tano under the Ghana Water Company Ltd, the Greater Accra Sustainable Sanitation and Livelihood Improvement and the Nationwide SCADA Project under the Ghana Water Company Ltd.
4. The commissioning of the Wa Water project by His Excellency the president last year.
5. The award of contracts by the Ministry for the drilling of Two Thousand (2,000) boreholes throughout the country.
6. The evacuation of illegal refuse heaps at six public places.
7. The allocation of One Hundred GHC100.00 million by the Ministry of Finance in support of the declaration of the President to provide financial resources for the Sector.
8. Additionally, the Ministry has also benefited from an amount of Fifty Nine million GHC59 million for the year 2018 financial year as part of its capital expenditure allocation.
9. The approval by the Public Procurement Authority for contracts to be awarded to suppliers for the supply of 15 mechanized stationary compactors, 10 specialized underground bins and 12 beach cleaning equipment.

This is the second time the Ministry had participated in the Meet – The – Press programme.

Former Minister (Hon. Joseph K. Adda), for Sanitation and Water Resources being briefed by Mr. Worlanyo, CEO, Community Water and Sanitation Agency

Complied by
Nelson Kofi Akatey

The highlight of the programme of activities at the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources for the week was the inauguration of a fourteen (14) member board for the Water Resources Commission by the Sector Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Hon Joseph Kofi Adda (MP).

The reconstituted board is under the chairmanship of CDR JC Addo (RTD). In his inaugural speech, Hon. Joseph Kofi Adda tasked the board to work hard to protect the nation’s water resources from pollution and environmental degradation.

Hon. Joseph Kofi Adda said the pollution of the nation’s water resources is a major concern for the government because of its effect on the quality of water for consumption and for industrial purposes; making it unwholesome for use.

He said the agenda of the government for the water sector is to provide safe, accessible and affordable water to all in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.

He advised the board to work closely with the Ghana Water Co. Ltd and Community Water and Sanitation Agency.
The Sector Minister however reminded them that their task supersedes that of the other two Agencies because they are to ensure all the nation’s water bodies are safe.

Hon. Joseph Kofi Adda said Ghana is blessed with abundance of water resources and as he put it “we must all work hard to ensure its safety and sustainability”.

He demanded from the board to be diligent when granting permits for the drilling of boreholes.
Touching on the relevance of data to guide the government in the policy formulation for the water sector, the Sector Minister asked the board to scan the whole country, gather information for analysis which would inform government direction.

He also reminded than to take into consideration the interest of the neighbouring countries which have raised issues on pollution of their water bodies.

On behalf of the board, the chairman CDR JC Adoo (RTD) thanked the government for their appointment and appealed to stakeholders, media and all sundry to bring on board their advise and expertise to guide the work of the board.
He promised the board will work hard to justify the confidence reposed in it.
The Hon. Minister took the members to swear the Oath of office and Secrecy.

Other members of the board who were sworn in are; Mr. Ben Yaw Ampomah, Mr. Yendor Ziema Jacob, Mr. Worlanyo Kwadjo Siabi, Mr. Ernest Kusi- Minkah, Ing. Eugene Ada Asomontsi, Ing. Emmanuel Kofi Modzaka, Mr. Awupeyagi Ayilari- Naa Juati, Ing. Randford Sekyi, Mr. John McDonald Allotey, Mr. Collins Anim- Sackey, Togbe Gbogbolulu V, Dr. Margaret Duah Atuahene, Mr. Kwabena Owusu- Mensah.