A conference on water, building and construction in West Africa is set to come off in Accra from June 13 to 15 to suggest solutions to the needs of the growing population in the sub-region.

The three-day seminar would address challenges being faced by citizens in the sub-region in the areas of housing, roads and services such as water supply and sanitation.

A statement signed by the Ace Event Management, the organisers of the event and copied to the Ghana News Agency said this year’s event would be opened by Mr Joseph Kofi Adda, the Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources.

The statement said the increase in urban population was accelerating the strain on natural resources, particularly in Ghana and other sub-Saharan countries, where rapid urbanization is outpacing the urban water infrastructure and related service provision.

The statement said “In most of the major cities in Sub-Saharan Africa, this population movement is placing unprecedented stress on fragile ecosystems and urban environments that have poorly developed urban water and sanitation infrastructure.

With an estimated 72 per cent of the region’s urban population currently living under slum conditions, urbanization has virtually become synonymous with slum growth reaching nearly 200 million in 2005 and continuing to grow at a pace,” it added.

The statement said last year’s conference discussed the shift from the Millennium Development Goals to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

These SDGs need to be attained by 2030, but there are severe doubts about the ability of sub-Saharan countries, such as Ghana and Nigeria, to fulfil their stated objectives in meeting with these goals, particularly if they continue with the mode of business operations.

The statement noted that “Currently only 5 per cent of Africa’s potential water resources are developed and only 5 per cent of Africa’s cultivated land irrigated, adding that “Less than 10 per cent of hydro-power potential is tapped.

The statement said the above suggested a great resource-utilisation potential in Africa, as the continent had massive untapped resources.

Though most of the water and sanitation projects undertaken to date were deemed to be potentially sustainable because of the use of local materials and standard/conventional technologies and approaches, fewer than half have met the needs of the beneficiaries.

Many schemes are donor-funded and, on completion, fall into a state of disrepair due to either lack of maintenance or sense of ownership or a combination of both.

The conference will focus discussions on shortfalls of water projects, the socio-cultural dimension of infrastructure issues, construction and housing concerns and capacity building concerns.