For one of the rainiest parts of Ghana, there is amazing little water in the taps of Koforidua. All the time I have been here there has only been one day, or slightly more, of water each week. It comes on Wednesday evening or Thursday morning and vanishes again sometime on Friday. This is usually the time when I do my washing and enjoy the convenience of water straight from the tap. I also fill every bucket and basin in the house. The landlord’s brother fills my outdoor tank with a hose and this easily keeps me going until the next week. Volunteers in other parts of Ghana, even the drier northern regions, tend to get a better supply of water than me, with the possible exception of those in Tamale, (Hi, Tim).
The simple fact is that Koforidua is a rapidly growing town. It is a regional capital and new developments are constantly springing up. The existing local reservoirs are woefully incapable of meeting the increasing demand. This has been recognised by the authorities and by the spring (fingers tightly crossed) a dramatic improvement should be place. A pipeline is currently being laid, which will drain water directly from Lake Volta and bring it to Koforidua. On a recent trip to Boti Falls, there were large pieces of plastic pipe lying along the roadside waiting to be laid.
However, in the meantime, after the arrival of two short- term volunteers the existing tank is no longer enough to see us through the week. VSO has purchased a tank more than two and a half times the original in capacity and my landlord agreed to plumb it into the mains and the house. As a result I now have a theoretically constant water supply. The pressure is not great, so the flow is modest and showers will continued to elude me, but this will make a huge difference.
The simple fact is that Koforidua is a rapidly growing town. It is a regional capital and new developments are constantly springing up. The existing local reservoirs are woefully incapable of meeting the increasing demand. This has been recognised by the authorities and by the spring (fingers tightly crossed) a dramatic improvement should be place. A pipeline is currently being laid, which will drain water directly from Lake Volta and bring it to Koforidua. On a recent trip to Boti Falls, there were large pieces of plastic pipe lying along the roadside waiting to be laid.
However, in the meantime, after the arrival of two short- term volunteers the existing tank is no longer enough to see us through the week. VSO has purchased a tank more than two and a half times the original in capacity and my landlord agreed to plumb it into the mains and the house. As a result I now have a theoretically constant water supply. The pressure is not great, so the flow is modest and showers will continued to elude me, but this will make a huge difference.
1 comment:
Hi Richard,
Hopefully Tamale's water will be better now the Prez has opened the new water works. Enjoy the polytank, mine has been brill when it does actually fill.
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