Ghana recognises water and sanitation as human rights

23 December 2009

The ministers of Water Resources Works and Housing, Albert Abongo and Local Government and Rural Development, Joseph Yieleh Chireh (seated in the centre) flanked by representatives of Development Partners.

Credit: WaterAid

The Government of Ghana and its Development Partners (DP’s) have acknowledged that access to water and sanitation should be treated as a right, with the understanding that right to water does not mean free services.

The decision was agreed at a Ministerial and Development Partners Roundtable, during the first Ghana Water Forum held in Accra from 20-22 October 2009. The Executive Secretary of the Coalition of NGOs in Water and Sanitation (CSO), Patrick Apoya, called it a milestone for the water, sanitation and hygiene sector in Ghana:

“It’s a very significant step for the WASH sector in Ghana; it has opened the way now for citizens to have a greater say in determining how services should be packaged for them. It has always been a question of need and what government thinks has to be done. But the recognition now gives room for communities to dialogue and give a balance between need and cost recovery. It also lays the foundation for us (CSO) to now pursue a legal frame within which this right will be acknowledged such as an Act of Parliament and possibly in the Constitution of Ghana.”

The last Ghana Water Forum was themed ‘Accelerating Water Security for Ghana’s socio-economic Development’ in hope of cementing commitments to achieve the Millennium Development Goal for water and sanitation, and in the longer term the African Vision 2025. The forum acted as a discussion platform for Ghana’s political leaders, water sector professionals, stakeholders and development partners to tackle opportunities and challenges for achieving water security for Ghana’s socio-economic development. The roundtable brought together Ministers, Heads of Missions and Country Representatives of Development Partners to deliberate on key issues related to coordination among users of water resources.

The Development Partners reaffirmed their continued commitment to work within the parameters of the Paris Declaration, which aims to make aid more effective and efficient. To ensure harmonization of sector investment plans and strategies in relation to water use, the DP’s also called on the Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing to develop a framework for an inter-ministerial steering committee before the end of 2009 with the objective of implementing the water and sanitation agenda for socio-economic development.

Highlights of the other calls made by the group include:

• The need for Ghana to strengthen their commitment to the eThekwini declaration on sanitation, the Sharm El Shiekh declaration and the implementation of AMCOW decisions on these two declarations
• Government should commit itself to the Statutes and Conventions of the Volta Basin Authority by ensuring payments of its annual subscription to the organisation, and also to the AMCOW Secretariat
• Government should progressively increase its budget allocation to achieve the MDG target for water and sanitation
• Government should commit to financially matching resources with regional and global commitments to which it is a signatory, including the eThekwini
  Declaration of African Governments to commit 0.5% of GDP to sanitation
• Give greater attention to investments in water infrastructure and develop national plans for achieving water security, preparation of which shall draw synergies between water, energy and agriculture, should include a national framework for investment
• Government should enhance its capacity as an enabler through policy formulation, regulation, financing and monitoring in developing a framework for the participation of private sector to leverage the efforts of the Government in infrastructure and service delivery

Other side events included a children, youth and business forum, a number of concurrent sessions and an exhibition by stakeholders.