The case of some selected district capitals in the Northern Region

Managing potable water provision in developing countries over the years has gone through various transformational processes. The transformation has been a move away from centralized systems to decentralized systems with emphasis on community water management systems. The main aim of the move has been to ensure improved access to potable water especially the neglected small towns and rural communities. The Government of Ghana’s water-restructuring programme under Community Water Sanitation Agency (CWSA) Act564 of 1998 transferred 152 Ghana Water and Sewerage Company (GWSC) now Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) managed water systems to the District Assemblies. Some of the systems had collapsed and abandoned, whilst others are functioning poorly due to inefficiencies and long years of neglect. After rehabilitation, the ownership and management were subsequently transferred to the communities to operate, maintain and manage the systems to ensure sustainable potable water delivery to the communities. Savelugu and Gusheigu in the Northern Region of Ghana are two of such community- managed systems. Savelugu and Gusheigu are located 27km and 120km from Tamale with population of 20,000 and 13,000 respectively. The study assessed the capacity of the communities in the management of the systems in terms of ensuring equity in participation, organizational capacity, and technical know-how. The study developed proposals for policy review for effective potable water provision in small towns. The study was carried out via the case study approach. Qualitative and participatory methods were used to assess the capacity of the management systems. Focus groups discussions and interviews with various actors were conducted. Both primary and secondary data were collected. The primary data were collected through interviews and the secondary data from annual reports. The two water systems at Savelugu and Gusheigu were rehabilitated in 1999 and have since improved potable water supply in the two communities. At Gusheigu, the system supplies 8,850/gallons potable water daily (24 hours), whilst at Savelugu, the system supplies 28,170/gallons water daily and rationed every two days to the six sections in the town. The Gusheigu water management system provides a practical example for Community Water Management in which water production and distribution is located in the community. The Savelugu system on the other hand also provides another model of community partnership with Government agency (GWCL). The GWCL only produces the water but the distribution and management of the water by the community to reduce large overhead cost. The management of the two systems was well integrated into the socio-political and economic structures of the communities. This has enhanced participation in the decision, especially in the areas of tariffs, maintenance, procurement etc. The high responsiveness of the management teams, coupled with voluntary communal labour for maintenance of the systems has helped to reduce Unaccounted For Water (UAFW), unit operational cost in the two systems compared with GWCL of Tamale. The weaknesses include; poor participation of women and children in the decisions of the systems. The activities of women are restricted to selling water and cleaning the surroundings of the water points. To ameliorate the situation the DAs should therefore speed up the gender-mainstreaming plan to enable both men and women appreciate the importance of women and children in decision-making especially on water. There is poor accountability especially at Gusheigu and weak financial positions of the two systems due mainly to non-economic tariffs. There is also low technical knowhow of the operation staff. The District Works Department and District Water and Sanitation Teams that are to support the operation staff are also poorly resourced. There is the urgent need for the DAs to provide logistics and budget lines for the District Water and Sanitation Teams and District Works Department to enable them provide technical support to the systems. The District Assemblies (DAs), Water Boards (WBs), Water Councils (WCs) should be trained in economic tariffs setting to appreciate the need to set and pay economic tariffs and also enforce accountability.

Source: KNUST