Parliament approves US$ 48 million for water supply in Accra

Parliament yesterday ratified an on-lending agreement between the government and the Ghana Water Company Ltd (GWLC) for $48.1 million to finance part of the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area Sanitation and Water Project (GWSP).

The amount is part of a $150 million grant secured by the government from the International Development Association (IDA ) of the World Bank to increase access to sanitation and water supply services.

The project is to be implemented by the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and the GWLC.

Benefits

When completed GWSP is expected to supply water to 250,000 people in the Greater Accra Region.

Under the terms of the agreement between the government and the World Bank, part of the money should be made available to the GWLC under a subsidiary credit agreement.

The credit has a 25- year repayment period and a grace period of five years.

The interest rate will be calculated according to the prevailing Bank of Ghana exchange rate.

Presenting the report of the Finance Committee of Parliament on the agreement before the House, its Chairma , Mr James Klutse Avedzi, said the committee was of the view that the government's on-lending programme offered an  opportunity for state-owned enterprises to show their credit worthiness and improve their ability to borrow from the commercial market on their own balance sheet and also get ratings from the international rating agencies.

Debate

In a debate on the committee's report, the member for Sekondi,  Papa Owusu Ankomah,  said the House needed to seriously examine the management of state owned enterprises (SOEs) to ensure that they were being managed prudently.

He said although the 1992 Constitution granted Parliament that power, the House was not discharging that duty effectively.

"There are a lot of leakages in some of these SOEs and Parliament needs to move its oversight to another level," he said.

The MP for Shai Osudoku, Mr David Tetteh Assumeng,  who is also the Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Works and Housing,  said the committee would take a keen interest in how the GWLC used the money.

"The GWLC should sit up and seal all the loopholes and ensure efficient use of its resources," he said.

The member for Effutu, Mr Alexander Afenyo - Markin, urged the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing to exercise "proper oversight" over the GWLC to ensure that the company repaid the loan to the government.