Africa-Press – Ghana. The Volta River Authority on Tuesday commissioned a Ghc60,000.00 solar powered water facility for the Battorkope community in the Upper Manya Krobo District of the Eastern Region. The facility is expected to provide potable drinking water for the people of the community.
Mr Samuel Fletcher, the Managing Director in Charge of Corporate Social Responsibility, said the VRA was mandated by an Act of Parliament to harness the resources of the Volta River to produce electricity to power the economy of Ghana and some economies in the sub-region.
However, in trying to live by the mandate, VRA activities affect some communities in their operational areas. He said due to this, VRA had over the years been partnering with the communities in their operational areas to be able to make life better for them, hence the facility was one of the VRA’s support to the people of Battorkope.
“Research indicates that 50 percent of all hospital admissions across the world are all due to water related diseases, so providing good water means trying to get 50 percent of people globally out of the hospital.”
Mr Fletcher noted that the VRA also acknowledged that a more sustainable way for people not to fall sick was for them to live healthy right from the beginning, thus a healthy community is a productive community.
“We help in the area of health, education, water and sanitation, and participate in community festivals, because we believe that as an organisation we must have a strong bond with our communities. The people of Upper Manya krobo also benefits form our scholarship schemes.”
The Manager noted that two similar facilities were commissioned in Akplorti in South Tongu and Asikuma- Dansokrom, and presented some cement bags to the people of Akati to help renovate their school facility
He said next week the Authority would also embark on its Employee Engagement Programme at the Kpando Senior High School and commission a biofill sanitation facility for the Adjena Senior High Technical School, worth Ghc 64, 000.00.
“We believe that our communities are key to our operations and so we like to do more for them. So we assure that VRA’s relationship with the various communities will keep growing stronger over the years.”
Mr Joe Sam, the District Chief Executive, Upper Manya Krobo, said the role of VRA in the development of the District since its inception could not be overemphasised.
He said the water and sanitation sector in the District had seen tremendous improvement due to the support from VRA, and this project would go a long way improve the Iives of the women and children, especially in Battorkope.
He said effective operations of water and sanitation committees at the community level was critical for the sustainability of water facilities in the communities hence the District had been providing technical backstopping through training and monitoring of such committees for the achievement of the objective.
He urged the traditional leaders in the communities, Assembly Members and stakeholders to support the VRA to continue to contribute greatly to the development of the District in the line of access to safe water.
Nene Tetteyku Gbadaji I, the Chief of Assesewa, said water forms the largest component of fluid in the body and as such was inevitable. “We don’t just need water, but good and quality water, and anyone who provides quality water for you, gives you life, and so the VRA must be applauded for the support.”
He noted that the facility meets national standard and must be properly maintained to provide the needed service to each member of the community. Nene Gbadaji I called for the culture of maintenance to prolong the facility’s life span.
“While thanking the donors, for the gesture, I charge members of the community to assist in handling the facility to provide long lasting service for all. Let us depend on this for portable water and ignore all water bodies that can cause water borne diseases in the community.”
Mr Amol Parker, the Project Manager, Project Maji, said the facility was not an ordinary facility and would last the test of time to serve the community for several years. He said the facility had a storage tank to store water during the day for use at night and has a total of nine taps around it.
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