Assessing the health implications of improved water supply in rural Ghana: the case of Atwima Mponua district in the Ashanti region of Ghana

Type Thesis or Dissertation - Master Thesis
Title Assessing the health implications of improved water supply in rural Ghana: the case of Atwima Mponua district in the Ashanti region of Ghana
Author(s)
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 2013
Abstract
Improved water supply in rural Ghana gives substantial health benefits. Water is an essential ingredient in all facets of human and economic development. Water has a direct impact on human health and any deterioration in quality affects human wellbeing. Lack of access to safe water is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally. Nevertheless, a considerable number of people around the world lack access to safe drinking water. Inevitably the burden of poor access to safe water falls primarily on the poorest of the poor. Until recently, little attention was paid to rural water supply in Ghana. Rural communities traditionally depended on surface and groundwater sources for their water supply needs. The Rural Water Supply & Sanitation Initiative (RWSSI) and the Rural Water and Sanitation Programme (RWSP-IV) with funding from the African Development Bank have significantly improved the water supply quality and access in rural Ghana. The empirical investigation of this study is based on the Atwima Mponua District, a beneficiary of the RWSSI and RWSP-IV programs. The main water related diseases in the district before the provision of improved water supply were malaria, buruli ulcer, worm infestation, diarrhea and bilharzia. Improved water supply has reduced the incidence of water related diseases in the district. However, frequent breakdown of water facilities, collection of water user fees, distance of water facilities to farm and time spent in accessing safe water source hamper total eradication of water related diseases. Government-community collaboration is an effective way of ensuring improved water supply sustainability for lasting benefits.

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