REPORT OF DIALOGUE ON “REACHING THE POOR: ISSUES OF RIGHTS, SUSTAINABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY”

Venue: The Ghana International Press Centre
Date: 26th May 2005

The Coalition of NGOs in Water and Sanitation (CONIWAS) officially commissioned its secretariat on the 26th of May 2005, graced by the Honourable Deputy Minister for Works and Housing, Mrs. Cecelia Dapaah, who officially commissioned the office. As part of activities to mark the occasion, and in line with its objective to promote dialogue among stakeholders in the water and sanitation sector including government and non-government actors, CONIWAS organised a policy dialogue on issues surrounding access by the poor at the Ghana International Press Centre.

Objective

The objective of the debate was to examine the contribution of government’s policy to sustainable access of rural communities and small towns to water and sanitation services and to highlight issues that may have been affecting poor communities as a direct result of the policy.

The Ministry of Works and Housing (MWH), the CWSA and CONIWAS all participated in the debate: The panellists included:

1. CWSA - Ben Kubabom, Director of Planning and Investments
2. MWH -  Mr Mintah Aboagye, Director, Water Directorate
3. CONIWAS - Mr. Benjamin Arthur, Chairman
4. CONIWAS - Mr. Patrick Apoya – Executive Secretary

Special Guests

There were three special guests for the occasion, including:

• Hon. Mrs. Ceceila Dapaah, Deputy Minister for Works and Housing
• Dorothy Rozga, UNICEF Country Representative
• Simon Trace, Director of Strategy (World wide), Water Aid

Conclusions and  Recommendations

• The facilitator strongly recommended the need to institutionalise these dialogues and make them a regular process. According to him, this dialogue should be considered the first in a series to follow regularly in the future. Other views supported this proposition, and some suggested that it be organised on quarterly or half-yearly basis.
• A joint team of CONIWAS and the CWSA should be constituted to follow up on the reported 3000 “orphaned” boreholes.
• Subsequent dialogues should take into consideration the need to involve women and the private sector directly.
• A consultative process should be put in place to decide on a relevant topic and date for the next debate.
• Following the excellent performance of the moderator, he should be contacted again for the next round of dialogue. Fortunately he expressed his willingness to make himself available for this service any time he is called upon.