Delegation from Ivory Coast tours Weija Water Treatment Plant

A 10-member Ivoirian delegation have paid a visit to the Weija Water Treatment Plant to acquaint themselves with the treatment and the supply of water to the people.

They included Mr Laurent Tchagba, the Minister of Water and Forests and leader of the delegation, Mr Yeo Wonnan Eugene, Director of Water Resources, Kone Namare, Director of Communication, and Mr Cisse Vakah, the Technical Adviser from the National Security Council.

The rest were Mr Loua Deti Cesar, Technical Security Coordinator, and Colonel Tanny Hugues Joseph Emery, the Director of Development and International Relation.

The delegation was accompanied by other Ivorian technical experts namely; Mr Quattara Bakary, the Manager of Mining Environment, Madam Kone Saramatou, Director of Hydrology, Mr Gogbeu Kodou Noel, Director, Laboratory Services and Mr Mahan Gueu Paul, Director of Africa Department.

Madam Cecilia Abena Dapaah, Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources who took the delegation round the plant, told the Ghana News Agency, that the visit was at the instance of the Prime Minister of Cote d’Ivoire, Mr Patrick Jerome Achi and President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and aimed at promoting good neighbourliness.

She said Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire shared a lot in common, hence the need for this bilateral meeting to discuss issues around water resources and to arrive at decisions that would protect the water bodies of the two countries.

Madam Dapaah stated that the government would continue to do its best to ensure that residents around the dam adhered to the environmental laws and encouraged them to properly dispose of waste.

She expressed concern about the impunity with which people had put up houses around the Weija Dam, stating that; “This poses risks to life and the environment.”

Mr Clifford Braimah, the Managing Director of the Ghana Water Company Limited, urged the Ivorian counterpart to extend their experiences in Ghana and use it to train their people to serve Cote d’Ivoire better.

Mr Chagba, the Ivorian Minister of Water and Forest, said plans were far advanced to further collaboration with Ghana, to help solve water pollution, which was affecting the two countries.

Mr Charles Tulashie, the Regional Chief Manager took the visitors through the challenges within the catchment area of the Weija Dam and its effects, which included such things as screening, sedimentation, filtration, disinfection, storage and transmission.