News and Events
November, 2009.
Dam authorities urged to win trust of communities they operate in.
The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) has urged the Bui Hydro Power Authority, the Volta River Authority (VRA) and other related Institutions to execute their operations in a transparent, accountable and equitable manner, in order to win the trust of the people living in the communities where they work. This will make Ghana a perfect role model for dam developments on the African continent.
Speaking at the just-ended 3rd Ghana Dams Dialogue and Hydropower sustainability assessment forum consultation in Ghana, which was under the theme “Address livelihoods and Institutional challenges for sustainable Dam Development in Ghana” Dr. Liqa Raschid-Sally, an official of the IWMI said the situation in Ghana, like in many African countries, was not about whether hydro electric dam developments were necessary. She cited from the past dam development experiences in the country that call for general thinking on how to handle future dams.
She pointed out that hydropower is the main source of energy contributing up to 60% Of Ghana’s electricity needs. She said Ghana was in the midst of constructing the Bui dam and many other dams like Juali, Pwaluga and Miawunyo, which were all in the pipeline. She stressed that all these were government initiatives and was likely that it would succeed in obtaining financing for these dams, given the conductive political environment.
Reducing the vulnerabilities of climate change through improved and integrated water management
The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Department for International Development (DFID) Climate Change Adaptation in Africa–programme recently approved funding for URAdapt over a 30-month period from fall 2009 onwards. URAdapt aims to reduce the vulnerabilities of Accra (Ghana) and Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) to climate change through improved and integrated water management that addresses urban issues within the context of urban-rural connectivity. This project brings together climate change and water management experts, decision-makers and representatives of vulnerable communities to collectively design adaptation strategies for urban water and sanitation services, and food supply. URAdapt is a multi-stakeholder partnership that is facilitated by IWMI, the Addis Ababa University and the Water Research Institute (WRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Ghana.
The project team met in Accra in October 2009 to further define work plans and milestones. The team is currently carrying out stakeholder and policy analyses to map the relevant urban water governance contexts in both Accra and Addis Ababa. This is in preparation for the inception meetings of the Accra and Addis Ababa multi-stakeholder platforms in early 2010. In addition, team members have recently participated in training on integrated climate risk assessment (November 2009) and participatory monitoring and evaluation (December 2009). They have also attended national and international conferences, workshops and other events in water, sanitation, food and climate change. A recent example is the launch of the national science-policy dialogue on Integrating Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation in Development Planning (ICCAMDP) in Accra (October 2009).