By: Franklin ASARE-DONKOH
The Coalition of NGOs in Water and Sanitation (CONIWAS) hosted a validation workshop in Accra to review and analyse the proposed 2026 Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) budget allocations.
According to the organisers, the workshop aimed to assess whether national WASH budget spending aligns with the ambitious goals set out in the Ghana Presidential WASH Compact and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6.
Bridging the $1.7 Billion Funding Gap
During the event, stakeholders emphasized that achieving universal access to safe water and sanitation by 2030 requires an estimated annual investment of US$1.7 billion.
The coalition’s current analysis indicates that existing budget cycles cover only about 10% of the needed funding, leaving a significant gap that threatens long-term sustainability.
Key focus areas of the 2026 budget validation include:
Climate-Resilient Infrastructure: Focusing on WASH systems that can withstand climate impacts, such as recurrent droughts and floods.
School and Healthcare WASH: Advocating for dedicated funding to improve Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) in health facilities and enhance learning environments through better school sanitation.
Rural-Urban Equity: Strengthening the Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA) to reform rural water delivery and ensure “safely managed” services reach marginalized communities.
Accountability and Reforms
The workshop follows recent strategic engagements between CONIWAS and the Parliamentary Select Committee on Sanitation and Water Resources. Civil society actors are calling for “value for money” and transparent reporting to track how every cedi in the 2026 budget is translated into actual service delivery on the ground.
“The journey we are on is built on the fundamental truth that without WASH services, sustainable development will remain an elusive dream,” the coalition stated, urging the government to treat WASH as a key driver for the 24-hour economy through jobs in waste management and small water enterprises.
More stories here
Source:
www.gbcghanaonline.com