The Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) the local chapter of the anti-corruption organisation, Transparency International (TI) has uncovered corrupt practices in the country’s water supply sector.
The findings of the three-year research and advocacy programme, are expected to promote access to basic services in Ghana.
Vitus Adoboo Azeem, Executive Secretary of GII told journalists in Accra that bribery and corrupt practices were exposed in six communities including Madina, Abokobi and Nima in Greater Accra region, Ahoe and Adaklo in the Volta region and Bekwai in the Ashanti region.
Some of the corrupt practices involved pricing of bidding documents, and award of many contracts to the same contractor under different names.
There were also reports of procuring entities making payment before due dates, over-invoicing, poor contract management, shoddy work and tempering of metres.
Metre readers were also accused of receiving direct payment, which should have been made to the Ghana Water Company Limited while vendors under-reported daily sales.
He recommended the streamlining and strengthening of anti-corruption tools and building of the capacity of agencies in the sector to implement such tools.
“There is the need to create anti-corruption awareness and systems within public organisation so that they can cooperate with civil society effectively to ensure that corruption can be prevented from occurring or dealt with adequately when it occurs.”
He called for the involvement of representatives of civil society groups at various levels.
Access to information by the public to the GII should also be increased to equip them on the operations of utility providers by publicizing utility accounts, public expenditure reviews and audit information, budgets, contract arrangement and annual reports.
It was also discovered that residents in rural areas, who are mostly poor, pay more tariffs for water than urban dwellers.
Linda Ofori-Kwafo, Programmes Manager at the GII noted that the aim of the project, which was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gate Foundation, was to achieve greater integrity and transparency in the provision of basic services. The three-year project will end in December 2011.
