Globalisation:Ghana

The Right to Clean Water

It goes without saying that clean water is the single most important commodity on the face of the earth, and yet a staggering number of people still do not have access to a regular, reliable supply. In Ghana, 35% of the population live without a source of safe water. Without pumped water, communities are left at the mercy of rainfall and are susceptible to a grim catalogue of diseases.

Since 1999, Adam Smith International has been working with the government of Ghana to develop policies that will result in millions of the very poorest people finally gaining access to clean water. In a project funded by DFID, ASI has been asked to help a government regulatory body to develop a pro-poor regulatory social policy that will result in universal access to affordable water.

The first step has been to carry out in-depth research to determine the exact state of current water supply facilities. This has involved travelling from village to village, door to door, to identify the true extent of the problem from the testimony of the people themselves.

The second step has been to incorporate these finding with mapping work already carried out on the country’s water-carrying infrastructure.

The third step has been to use this information to identify priorities and plan a suitable spending policy to ensure that water services are delivered efficiently and effectively to those that need them most desperately.

ASI will be working with the Ghanaian regulatory authorities over the next few years to continue to shape their approach to water delivery. In time, a regular, reliable, affordable supply of clean, hygienic pumped water will cease to be a luxury and will instead become a right.