The Integrated Social Development Centre (ISODEC) says it has cause to believe that the privatization of the water sector this government is pushing is part of the conditionalties of the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative.

The Deputy Executive Director of ISODEC, Bishop Akologo during an interaction with the press yesterday said information ISODEC has gathered from IMF and World Bank have confirmed the long cherished dreams of the Bretton Woods Institutions to ensure that the water sector is sold to multinational corporations. "We believe that the privatization scheme is a fulfillment of conditionalities imposed on our government through the Structural Adjustment and HIPC Programmes by the World Bank and IMF," an ISODEC release said.

Akologo said ISODEC is alarmed by the absence of full disclosure of the character; origins, biddings, competence and history of Multinational Corporations that are vying for contracts to distribute water in the country. He challenged the government to publish the Transaction Advisors Report that spells out nature of the contract to enable Ghanaians judge whether the impending privatization of water is in the national interest.

ISODEC maintains its position that in the national interest the state should keep the water sector under its control. This is because the multinational companies short listed to run the sector have corrupt backgrounds. The foreign companies are Saur, whose parent company is Baouyegues of Paris, Biwater, Suez Lyonnaise Des Eaux and International Water United Utilities.

According to information made available by ISODEC, Saur is alleged to have made as many as twelve bribes and political payoffs in the World Bank funded Lesotho Highlands Water Project that are the subject of various investigations. Besides, Saur's parent company Bouygues and Suez Lyonnaise Des Eaux are under investigations for corruption and operation of cartels in other parts of the world.

ISODEC maintains that the profit motives of these companies make it even more dangerous for the government to cede the water sector to them. For instance Saur's parent company makes an estimated annual sales of US$16.9 billion, which is twice Ghana's Gross Domestic Product. That of Biwater is US$293.3 million and International Water United Utilities around US$3.7 billion.

These staggering profits mean that the companies are not charities that would distribute water at subsidized tariffs. These companies, according to ISODEC have a track record of increasing tariffs arbitrarily in many countries, which have triggered wild demonstrations among the poor.

Given the fact that water is a basic right, ISODEC feels the government must protect it from multinational corporations.

ISODEC is of the view that if the multinationals take over the water sector, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) would become ineffective because the terms of the contract and the global nature of the corporations would not permit the PURC to regulate tariffs .

Against all odds, what the government needs to do is to make Ghana Water Company efficient by providing the necessary logistics and good manpower to enable it to deliver.

ISODEC says this was the view of some members of the government when they were in opposition. In an article titled "In defence of the GWSC: stop the butchering" and published in Wednesday August 4 edition of the Daily Graphic which ISODEC distributed to the press, Hon. Kan-Dapaah, MP and current Minister of Energy said the income levels of both individuals and companies are so low that the large majority of the people and commercial entities cannot afford to pay economic utility prices.

In the article, Kan-Dapaah debunked the notion that the perceived inefficiency of the was the result of poor management. He said the company has some of the best management personnel in Ghana who have the ability to turn the company around if given the opportunity. 'This question of Ghanaians not having the competence is an insult", Kan-Dapaah said in the article.

With these weapons in hand Akologo wondered why Kan-Dapaah and the like have changed their minds so soon.

"If they can change their minds and are now pushing for water privatisation, why can't ISODEC change its mind against privatization of water?" a staff of ISODEC questioned.