Engage Now Africa: Ghana- Clean Water for Residents of Nkwatia

Water is a basic necessity of life. Yet millions of people living in developing countries lack access to portable water. In Ghana, access to safe water remains one of the critical problems confronting rural communities. Information gathered from the Community Water and Sanitation Authority (CWSA) of Ghana indicates that at the end of 2008, only 48 percent of Ghana’s rural population was adequately supplied with clean safe water (Kokutse, 2009). Diseases from unsafe water such as diarrhea, dysentery and guinea worm kill more people every year than all forms of violence. The World Health Organistion (WHO) reports that over 3.6% of the global disease burden can be prevented by improving water supply. It is against this background that ENA is partnering with communities to provide safe drinking water to thousands of people living in Ghana.

Nkwatia is a village in the Kwahu East district in the Easter Region of Ghana with a population of 1000. The area is surrounded by beautiful ridges and picturesque caves and escarpments. It has a serene atmosphere due to its altitude. There are a number of water falls also in this community yet inhabitants of Nkwatia lack access to clean and safe water. The hilly nature of the community makes it very difficult for people to enjoy pipe borne water.

For decades the people of Nkwatia have been depending on Omankyene river as their main source of water for drinking and other domestic purposes. This source of water is unhygienic and has a negative impact on the activities of the community members especially women and children. Many of them complained of various forms of skin diseases, diarrhea and other water borne related diseases.