A member of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) Board and Deputy Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Dr. Kwabena Otoo, has called for urgent regulatory reforms to bring order to Ghana’s water production and distribution sector.
He made the appeal on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Wednesday, April 29, warning that the absence of a clear legal framework is undermining oversight in the sector.
According to him, beyond Ghana Water Limited, several private water tanker operators and producers are operating without adequate regulation on water quality, pricing, and sourcing.
Dr. Otoo said the situation has created a regulatory gap that allows unmonitored extraction of water from underground and surface sources, particularly in areas such as Tema and its environs.
He contrasted the water sector with the power sector, which he said benefits from a more defined institutional and regulatory structure.
Dr. Otoo stressed that establishing a clear legal and regulatory framework for water production and distribution would help ensure quality control, fair pricing, and accountability across the sector.
“Essentially there are no legal framework for water production and distribution in Ghana so apart from GWL, you have all these tankers going round and nobody checks the quality of the water, the pricing or even the source. It is a jungle,” he said.
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