By Benjamin Makafui Attipoe, Vume
The Impala Foundation, an Accra-based Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) focused on educational development, community empowerment, volunteerism and healthcare, has donated 10 boreholes fitted with reverse osmosis facilities to the Vume community in the South Tongu District of the Volta Region. The facilities, which have been strategically distributed across the township, are expected to provide residents with access to potable water and help address the community’s long-standing water crisis.
The initiative was sponsored by the Impala Foundation through its Founder and National Deputy Women Organizer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Ms. Dzifa Tegah, whose maternal relations hail from Vume.
Speaking during the commissioning of the facilities, Madam Tegah said the donation was motivated by the persistent water challenges confronting the community, despite the presence of the Ghana Water Company’s pipeline network.
She said residents had for decades been compelled to rely on the Volta River for their domestic water needs because the existing pipe-borne water system had failed to adequately serve the community.
According to her, the situation was particularly worrying because the river, although an important resource for farming and other activities, could not be relied upon as a safe source of drinking and household water. “Several years ago, over 20 years, there was no water here at all, and the only source of water was the river that you have seen over there,” she said.
Madam Tegah explained that although a pipeline had subsequently been extended into the community, water from the Ghana Water Company, was still not flowing consistently in Vume. She said residents were therefore forced to purchase water transported in gallons by tricycle operators, describing the situation as unacceptable for a community located close to the Volta River. “This is a town that I have stayed in before for some days and weeks on short vacations, and I just don’t understand why things are supposed to be like this,” she said.
She said the Impala Foundation therefore decided to provide 10 boreholes specifically for Vume after identifying access to potable water as a fundamental challenge requiring urgent intervention. Madam Tegah noted that the facilities were intended to benefit all sections of the community, including potters, farmers, fishermen, households, schools and churches. She expressed confidence that the 10 boreholes would significantly improve access to potable water and help stabilise the community’s water situation.
The Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Hon. Maxwell Kwame Lukutor, commended Madam Tegah and the Impala Foundation for complementing government’s efforts to address the water challenges confronting communities in the constituency. He said the provision of boreholes fitted with reverse osmosis technology was particularly important because of the high salinity levels often found in groundwater in parts of the South Tongu area.
Mr. Lukutor said the facilities, together with attached polytanks, would enable residents to store water and access it continuously after pumping. He stressed that development required contributions from different stakeholders, including government, Parliament, district assemblies, NGOs and individuals.
“As for building a constituency, a community, a country, no one person can do it. We do it from diverse directions, from the Member of Parliament, from the District Assembly, from NGOs and from individuals,” he said.
The MP said South Tongu, whose name reflects its close relationship with the river, continued to face challenges associated with waterborne diseases, making access to treated and potable water particularly important. He explained that although the district had a water treatment plant at Agordome that supplies treated water to parts of the area, many communities remained without reliable access to pipe-borne water.
Hon. Lukutor said the situation had made boreholes an important temporary intervention, but stressed that the high salinity of groundwater meant that reverse osmosis systems were necessary to make the water suitable for domestic consumption.
The MP also disclosed that government was taking steps to address the broader water supply challenge through the expansion of the water treatment project at Agordome.
He said the second phase of the project had already seen significant progress, including the laying of pipelines, but payment challenges had stalled its completion. According to him, government owed the contractors more than €15 million, while the company had indicated that an initial payment of about €12 million would enable it to complete the project.
Mr. Lukutor said efforts were being made through the Ministry of Finance and the Ministries responsible for water resources and housing to secure funding for the project. He said the matter had been brought to the attention of President John Dramani Mahama, with the expectation that the project would be captured in the 2027 national budget.
He expressed optimism that once the necessary payments were made, the project could be completed within approximately six months to one year, paving the way for the extension of potable water to more communities in the area.
Residents of Vume welcomed the intervention, describing the water crisis as a major challenge that had persisted for many years. Some residents, including Mr. Frank Amediku, Mr. John Kwame Ahelege and Ms. Anita Banehene, appealed to the government to urgently intervene to provide a permanent solution to the community’s water challenges.
They said the unreliable supply of pipe-borne water had forced residents to depend heavily on the Volta River and privately supplied water, with implications for household health and livelihoods.
Vume is located along the Accra-Aflao highway, with pottery-making serving as one of the major occupations of the people, alongside fishing, farming and petty trading. Despite its proximity to the Volta River, the community has struggled to secure reliable access to potable water over the years.
The Paramount Chief of the Vume Traditional Area, Togbe Akonor II, who chaired the ceremony, described the community’s prolonged water situation as frustrating. He expressed appreciation to the Impala Foundation and Ms. Dzifa Tegah for responding to the needs of the people through the provision of the 10 reverse osmosis boreholes.
The Paramount Chief said the intervention would provide much-needed relief to residents while complementing ongoing efforts by government to secure a permanent solution to the community’s water crisis.
The donation is expected to provide a more reliable source of potable water for households and public institutions in Vume, while reducing residents’ dependence on untreated water from the Volta River.
