Launch of the Asutifi North District Based Full WASH Coverage Initiative

Published on: 16/03/2018

Kenyasi | Ghana, 16 March, 2018 – The Asutifi North District Assembly, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation (CNHF) Grantees and other allied partners will launch the Asutifi North District Based Full WASH Coverage Initiative today in Kenyasi No.1 of the Brong Ahafo Region.

The launch of the Initiative, called, Asutifi North Ahonidie Mpontuo (ANAM) will mark the start of the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) master plan implementation and leveraging of partnerships for shared and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by 2030.

Speaking about the initiative, Vida Duti, Country Director of IRC Ghana said:
"It is heart-warming that after a successful process of the District Based Full WASH Coverage start-up initiative, Asutifi North District was selected through rigorous and diligent process and a WASH master plan developed to respond to the challenges of the WASH sector with the target of providing full coverage by 2030. The launch of the ANAM initiative will progressively advance the vision expressed by all stakeholders and owned by the District Assembly that 'Every person in Asutifi North District will have access to sustainable safe water, sanitation, and hygiene services in a conducive environment where water resources are sustainably managed.' At IRC and as a CNHF Grantee we are pleased to be part of this initiative and will together with CNHF and Partners support the District Assembly to set the groundwork for a strong collective solution, drawing on the different partner expertise in providing sustainable WASH services to every person in Asutifi North District by 2030."

The Ghana water sector strategic development plan (2014) aims to make water, sanitation and hygiene services universally accessible for all people resident in Ghana, and to manage water resources sustainably for multiple purposes by 2025 thereby contributing to the Sustainable Development Goal 6. However, the Joint Monitoring Programme 2017 report shows that the country has made slow progress towards the realization of this goal. The national population with access to safely managed water is 27%, whilst access to basic sanitation is 14%. The situation in the Asutifi North District is not different as an estimated 3% of the district population has access to safely managed drinking water whilst only 23% have access to basic sanitation.

To accelerate the rate of progress and demonstrate what it takes to reach full WASH coverage in a district, the WASH Master Plan has been prepared collectively with the District and other Hilton grantee partners to achieve SDG 6. This master plan which forms the core of the ANAM initiative will i) provide a framework for interventions in the WASH sector of the District covering a period of 13 years; ii) enable the District to better coordinate and ensure development partners align their efforts; iii) provide the basis for tracking progress towards the realisation of the WASH vision of the District.

The overall purpose of the initiative is to collectively advance towards, i) Improved access to basic water services by 2030; ii) Increased access to improved and reliable environmental sanitation services by 2030; iii) All educational and health institutions have access to basic water, sanitation, hygiene services on site; iv) A formidable and inclusive institutional and management framework established for managing WASH in the District; v) Behaviour of people, District Assembly, and stakeholders toward WASH and IWRM improved; and vi) Water resource management strategies successfully implemented to ensure sustainable water quality.

The intent is to progressively advance, driven by the District Assembly in, i) Coordinating stakeholders' efforts towards implementation of the master plan and alignment with national policies and processes; ii) Strengthening the District's capacity for delivering the WASH goals needed to realise the 2030 vision; iii) Building CSOs capacities to undertake advocacy in response to District WASH challenges and enhance WASH service delivery and associated water resource management; iv) Pooling partner resources together and attracting additional funding to finance the implementation of the master plan; v) Documenting best practices, promising solutions and approaches and sharing to support policy uptake and scale-up.

Under the theme, partnership for shared and sustainable management of WASH for all by 2030, the launch of the initiative will bring together stakeholders from government, civil society and non-governmental organisations, private sector, service providers, private operators, development partners, service users, traditional authorities and the media among others.

Editor’s notes

About the District Assembly

Asutifi North District Assembly (ANDA) is one of the 27 District Assemblies in the Brong-Ahafo Region of Ghana. It has 936 square kilometres with 149 settlements and 49 villages with a population below 75 people. It has a rural to urban ratio of 68:32 and a male to female ratio of 51.2:49.8. The estimated population is 52,259 (2010 Population and Housing Census), projected to be 62,816 in 2017 and 82,234 in 2030. The District Assembly is the planning and development authority that owns the WASH Master Plan and its implementation.

About IRC

IRC is an international think-and-do tank that works with governments, NGOs, businesses and people around the world to find long-term solutions to the global crisis in water, sanitation and hygiene services and integrated water resources management (IWRM) in developing countries. IRC Ghana will partner with the Asutifi North District and other partners to work towards providing 100% WASH services by 2030.

About other CNHF Partners

• Safe Water Network (SWN) works with Ghana government at all levels and collaborate with both the public and private sectors to overcome the country's water problems. Since 2008, SWN has worked with communities in Ghana to develop locally owned and managed Safe Water Stations. SWN will work to establish small water enterprises in urban and peri-urban areas in the District.
• World Vision International is a global Christian relief, development and advocacy organization dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice. World Vision will work to provide water services in rural and deprived communities in the District.
• Netcentric Campaigns is a non-profit organization that mobilizes advocacy networks among people to catalyze change. By equipping people with training and resources and aligning them around a common vision, our team brings people together to effectively tackle complex issues. Founded in 2000. Netcentric will provide technical support to assess the seven elements of connection among the key players in the District who must have the capacity to work as a network.
• Aquaya Institute is a non-profit research and consulting organization dedicated to improving health in the developing world. Aquaya Institute delivers the knowledge and tools that are required to achieve universal access to safe water and sanitation. Aquaya Institute will develop approaches for drinking water quality management.
• National Foundation for the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) The CDC Foundation is an independent non-profit and the sole entity created by Congress to mobilize philanthropic and private-sector resources to support the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's critical health protection work. CDC will support WASH in schools and health facilities.

Media Contact details IRC Ghana
Abubakari Wumbei
Communication Learning & Advocacy Coordinator
T +233 (302) 79 7473
T +233 (302) 79 7474
wumbei@ircwash.org

Media Contact details Asutifi North District
Kombat B. Maxwell
T +233 (352) 094736
T +233 (244) 780506
Bassum99@gmail.com