Batuisa residents appeal for potable water

The Chief and people of the Batuisa community in the Builsa South District of the Upper East Region, have appealed to government for boreholes to bring relief to residents.

The residents, who do not have a source of potable water, depend on rivers and streams, which usually dry up during the dry season.

Nab Adindiok Ateng, the Chief of the community, made the appeal on behalf of his people at a Social Auditing forum, organized by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) with funding from the European Union (EU).

The forum on the theme “Citizens for Transparency and Accountability,” was part of the Anti-corruption, Rule of law and Accountability Programme (ARAP).

The Chief noted that it would be a relief if the government through the Builsa South District Assembly or benevolent organizations could assist the community with boreholes.

Apart from the issue of potable water, Nab Ateng mentioned the development needs of the community, which needed attention to improve the livelihoods of the people.

He appealed for the completion of a daycare nursery centre, electricity, Community-Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS), and expansion of the Livelihoods Empowerment Against Poverty Alleviation Programme (LEAP) to cover more vulnerable groups in the area.

Abdul Mumuni Adams, the Assemblyman for the Batuisa-Naadema Electoral Area, pledged to convey some of the concerns raised by the chief and people of the area to the District Assembly for redress.

Alhaji Alhassan Bukari, the District Director of NCCE, explained that the Social Auditing programme was to promote community ownership of development projects and policies.

He said the programme was also to create awareness on the operations of the Local Government Act and to empower the Citizenry to demand accountability from duty bearers.

Alhaji Bukari schooled the community members on the need to demand accountability from duty bearers to ensure that government resources were used judiciously.

He explained that Social Auditing was not an event but a process towards achieving a good result.

“Social Auditing will help community members to know the plans, policies and programmes of the District Assembly so that their activities can be monitored closely and make sure that developmental projects are executed effectively,” the District Director stressed.

Through the efforts of the NCCE, a five-member Community Implementation Committee was formed to work with relevant stakeholders to address the community development needs.