Gov’t inaugurates water projects for communities

The government has inaugurated the Makayili, Bincheratanga and Tatali water supply systems in the Nanumba North and Tatali/Sangule Districts to provide safe, reliable and affordable water to the people.

The Makayili, Bincherantanga and Tatali water supply systems formed part of seven water supply systems that had been completed under the on-going 30 million Canadian Dollar project to provide a total of 20 water supply systems to communities in the country.

Three other water supply systems envisaged to be completed by the first quarter of 2015 include the Nakpayili, Kparigu, and Wapuli projects.

The project, which started in 2009, is being undertaken with financial and technical support from the Canadian Government and it is to provide potable water to 125,000 people.

Alhaji Collins Dauda, Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing, who inaugurated the projects at the two communities on Tuesday, said government had embarked on numerous projects to build new water systems and rehabilitate existing ones in the pursuit of attaining water for all by 2020.

Alhaji Dauda announced that the Northern Region was benefiting from the Sustainable Rural Water and Sanitation Project being supported by the World Bank to further improve rural water and sanitation delivery in the region.

He said under the project, 400 boreholes in the Northern Region would be rehabilitated whilst small town water systems at Bole, Tinga, Daboya, Kpalbe, Bimbilla, Wulensi and Zabzugu would be expanded and rehabilitated

He said 80 institutional latrines and other sanitation and hygiene facilities would be constructed.

He urged district assemblies, where the projects were undertaken to set aside funds to support their maintenance.

Alhaji Dauda cautioned Water and Sanitation Management Teams in the beneficiary communities to charge realistic tariffs to ensure that water was affordable to all the people.

Alhaji Mohammed Muniru Limuna, Northern Regional Minister, said the construction of the small town water systems demonstrated the government’s commitment to better the lot of the people, adding that a lot more development projects including electrification, construction of roads, schools and hospitals were on-going in the country.

Alhaji Limuna emphasised the need for peace in the communities to ensure accelerated development.

Madam Anik Desmeules-Raggio, First Secretary in-charge of Development at the Canadian High Commission in Accra, who represented the Canadian High Commissioner, assured of continued cooperation between the two countries.

Earlier, the entourage paid a courtesy call on the Regent of Bimbilla, Nyelinboligu Lana Yakubu Andani Dasana to brief him about the projects.

The chiefs and people of Makayili and Bincheratanga thanked the government for providing them with potable water, which would help end the challenges associated with drinking unwholesome water.