Ghana Water Ltd launches 24 month catchment recovery plan to tackle rising siltation in raw water sources

The Managing Director of Ghana Water Limited (GWL), Adam Mutawakilu, has sounded the alarm over the increasing siltation of the country’s raw-water sources, warning that the trend is threatening water production and supply nationwide.

Speaking at a press conference held at the company’s headquarters in Accra on Monday, Mr. Mutawakilu said Ghana’s rivers are silting up faster than treatment plants were designed to handle, leading to operational challenges, higher treatment costs, and intermittent shutdowns.

“After heavy rains, turbidity at several major intakes now spikes to levels that make conventional treatment difficult, costly, and sometimes temporarily impossible,” he explained.

“If we don’t act at the source, we will spend more each year to produce less water.”

To address the growing threat, Mr. Mutawakilu announced a 24-month Catchment Recovery Plan, a multi-sector initiative aimed at stabilising priority rivers, restoring abstraction capacity, and reducing treatment losses.

The plan will focus on eight key river systems across the country, combining riverbank re-vegetation, targeted dredging, and stronger enforcement of riparian buffer protection.

The GWL Managing Director highlighted the financial and technical toll siltation has taken on the utility’s operations.

He revealed that emergency dredging at the Owabi and Mampong treatment plants alone cost GHS 64 million and GHS 13.8 million respectively in the past year.

These interventions, though necessary, required temporary shutdowns that disrupted water supply to surrounding communities.

“Water that once responded to alum now demands more complex treatment after storm events dominated by fine clays and colloids,” he said, noting that GWL has been compelled to shift from alum to more effective but expensive polymers.

The shift, he explained, has resulted in a 400% increase in chemical costs at some plants in the Ashanti Region, including Barekese, Odaso, and Konongo.

Mr. Mutawakilu warned that if siltation remains unchecked, the ripple effects will extend far beyond Ghana Water Limited, affecting multiple sectors of the economy.

“Beverage companies, food processors, hotels, hospitals, and schools will all face rising costs and supply interruptions,” he cautioned.

“When a fundamental input like treated water becomes more expensive and less reliable, productivity falls and prices rise.”

The GWL boss called on Corporate Ghana, public-sector agencies, and development partners to collaborate on the Catchment Recovery Plan, pledging transparency and accountability in implementation.

He outlined a partnership framework that includes co-funding from private companies, collaboration with District Assemblies, the Water Resources Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Minerals Commission, and the Ghana Gold Board, as well as support from traditional authorities to mobilize local communities.

“This partnership will deliver tangible benefits — improved supply reliability, lower long-term costs, measurable ESG impact, and greater resilience against climate-driven variability in raw-water quality,” he said.

Mr. Mutawakilu commended the Government of Ghana for intensifying the fight against illegal mining and protecting water bodies.

He praised President John Dramani Mahama for his decisive leadership through the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and lauded the registration and tracking of mining equipment as “a bold step making it increasingly difficult for illegal miners to operate.”

He also acknowledged the work of the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Kofi Buah, whose Blue Water Guard initiative is monitoring and reclaiming polluted water bodies, and the Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Hon. Kenneth Gilbert Adjei, for his continued partnership with GWL.

While applauding the progress made, the GWL Managing Director cautioned that riverbeds remain heavily silted, requiring continuous desilting and protection to sustain the gains.

Mr. Mutawakilu reaffirmed GWL’s commitment to restoring water security nationwide.

“With your support, Ghana Water Limited will recover lost capacity at priority plants, reduce treatment losses and energy costs, and stabilise water supply to households, schools, hospitals, and businesses,” he assured.

“Water security begins at the source. If we protect the source, our plants will do the rest. Let us act with urgency and purpose—together—to keep Ghana’s taps running.”

Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith