Nana Yaw Barima-Barnie, communications manager for the Western Region of Ghana Water Company (GWCL), task residents of Sekondi-Takoradi and surrounding areas to store water for at least three days during the dry season.
In an interview with an, Nana Barimah-Barnie said that water has become a scarce commodity in the Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis, so people must learn to use it with caution.
He further emphasized that in the past month, the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis (STMA) and Efea-Kvesim Sinsim (EKMA) in the western region have been subjected to serevere water shortages, hence the need for caution.
He said the water shortage is attributed to the low water levels in the Inchaban Dam and Daboase River, which serve as the main source of raw water for the treatment plant due to the dry season.
“Usually during the dry season the raw water source goes down because it does not rain and there is no freshwater into the river basin at Daboase which is processed at the Dam site at Inchaban, so day-by-day the levels go down, hence water is rationed around this time of the year”.
He further explained that the shortage of water is due to the growing population in the region, and expressed the hope that the situation would be addressed once the expansion of the Sekondi-Takoradi water supply project is completed to provide over 22 million tonnes of water to the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis alone.
When asked how long it would take to see the water flowing through the tap, he said: “not until there is water in the river basin”. The Communication Manager also called on residents to remain calm, because the company’s unremitting efforts to provide and share a small amount of water can save the situation.
He also pleaded with the public to pay their water bills in arrears before the announcement of the free water supply by President Akufo-Addo as a measure to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
