Bismarck Owusu Nortey, Programmes Officer of the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana, has described the one village, one dam project as a waste.
He argued that the state has wasted several millions of resources on the project without having any meaningful benefits.
He wondered why a project that cost the state an estimated GHC 175 million each hasn’t come in handy for us now that the Northern area is having a dry spell.
Mr. Owusu Nortey said the challenge brings to light our priorities as a country, adding that just in two months without rain, these projects have gone to waste, and we have also wasted money in the name of irrigation and one village, one dam.
He noted the country has failed to think long-term in addressing our challenges.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Mr. Nortey revealed that from their own assessment done, he can state categorically that the one village, one dam project has not yielded the expected outcomes.
“We are just wasting resources. When you do the calculations, the government claimed to have constructed 574 dams. Each dam will cost not less than Ghc 175 million. So if, after two months without rain, the dams could not help address the dry spell, then you have wasted our resources.”
Bismarck Owusu Nortey emphasized the need for authorities to be proactive and address challenges, urging them to stop talking and focus on addressing them instead of wasting resources on unrealistic projects.
“Droughts are so extreme and usually last between one and two years, but what we are experiencing in Ghana is a dry spell that lasts about two months. So our dams should be able to help in addressing the dry spell. But our dams are not able to solve the problem of the dry spell, and that is shocking. The government claimed to have constructed 574 dams, but we didn’t have the capacity to visit all the dams, but we’ve visited a couple of them, and if you knew the state of the dams, you would be shocked.
At some of the locations, you will realise that they brought in excavators and dug a hole with the expectation that the rain will fall and fill the hole. Some of the dams are also extremely far from the farmers, while in a lot of the places, the dams were dry. Some individuals in other locations have also used the dams as source of water for animals.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
