Ghana
Delivery of sustainable sanitation and water supply
Letter from Ghana: heart of the country, Ashanti Region must adapt to stay strong
August 2022: The Ashanti Region is the heart of Ghana and must adjust its infrastructure and services as it experiences rapid urbanisation. Read our Letter from Ghana to learn why the region is so important, how it is changing, and how WSUP has been supporting it.
Upgrading the importance of low-income customers in Ghana’s water sector
January 2022: Ghana’s national water provider, Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), have upgraded their Low-Income Customer Support Unit into a full department which will improve the lives of many more residents.
Ghana has a growing population of 29 million people and is one of the most urbanised countries in Africa.
Almost half the country now lives in towns and cities, and of these less than one fifth has access to at least a basic sanitation service.
While poverty in Ghana is in decline, the challenges caused by rapid urbanisation are on the rise. Nearly half the population in Kumasi rely on public toilets, with only one toilet for every 1,000 people, and water services in low-income urban areas are often non-existent. This is having a massive knock-on effect on the population’s health, dignity and economic growth.
WSUP started working in Ghana in 2010, improving water and sanitation services in Accra and Kumasi. Since then we’ve developed strong relationships with service providers and policy makers to improve water and sanitation services for the country’s poorest urban communities. We have also set up a standalone sanitation service, Clean Team, that provides container-based toilets for a monthly fee covering toilet rental and the container replacement service.
Water & Sanitation for the Urban Poor has really enhanced our work as environmental health officers in the field.
Valuing toilets: how customers rate the container-based sanitation experience
November 2021: This blog presents key findings from a ground-breaking study looking at customer satisfaction with Clean Team Ghana, a CBS provider owned by WSUP serving over 3200 customers in Kumasi, Ghana’s second city.
Building urban resilience in the face of Covid-19: new video shows our hygiene work in Ghana and Kenya
July 2021: WSUP with the support of the Hygiene & Behaviour Change Coalition (HBCC), delivered a rapid customer focused communication hygiene campaign, to combat the spread of Covid-19 in some of the most vulnerable communities in Ghana and Kenya.
New water systems of enormous value to growing towns in Ghana
March 2021: A key trend of urbanisation across Africa is villages evolving into small towns but lacking the accompanying investment in basic services. The Ashanti region, Ghana’s most populated region, is an example of this challenge. As a result, whole communities lack access to clean water.
Ghana reactivates the call for a National Sanitation Authority
December 2019: Plans for a new national sanitation body in Ghana have been reactivated by the government, raising the hope of accelerated efforts towards universal coverage. But serious challenges remain.
Learn more about our work in Ghana:
Blog: November 2019 – For sale: Safe sanitation in Ghana
Report: November 2019 – Sales glitch: Can Ghana unblock its toilet sales market?
Report: November 2019 – Why are toilets so expensive in Ghana? Experience from Kumasi
Report: November 2019 – How can sanitation actors in Ghana stimulate toilet loan uptake?
Report: January 2019 – Ghana’s National Sanitation Authority: recommended role & responsibilities
Video: November 2018 – Towards the 80% in Ga West, Ghana
Blog: March 2018 – Tackling urbanisation in Ghanaian cocoa farming communities
Blog: March 2018 – Interview with Faustina Boachie, Ghana Water Company Limited
Project: March 2020 – Evaluation of user experience outcomes of Clean Team service use
Clean Team Ghana is a social enterprise in Kumasi providing container-based toilets for a monthly fee. This project conducted an evaluation of user experience outcomes for customers of Clean Team Ghana to further improve the business model and aid understanding around user experience for this type of model.
To find out how you can support our work in Ghana, please contact us at partnerships@wsup.com or call us on +44 (0)20 7822 1867.