Prestea Huni Valley Assembly earns praise for self-funded sanitation drive amid chronic funding gaps

The Parliamentary Committee on Sanitation and Water Resources has commended the Prestea Huni Valley Municipal Assembly for taking the initiative to finance sanitation projects using internally generated funds (IGF), a move that underscores both local resourcefulness and the persistent challenges facing Ghana's sanitation infrastructure nationwide.

The praise reflects growing recognition that many local assemblies are forced to become innovative with limited resources as they grapple with delayed disbursements from the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) and persistent equipment shortages that hamper service delivery across the country.

Self-funding as a necessity, not a luxury

By channelling its own revenue into sanitation initiatives rather than waiting for central government allocation, Prestea Huni Valley demonstrates a pragmatic approach to addressing immediate community needs. This strategy is particularly significant in a context where many assemblies report chronic delays in receiving DACF releases—funds that are constitutionally allocated to support local development and service provision.

The committee's commendation highlights a broader tension in Ghana's decentralisation framework: while local assemblies are tasked with managing sanitation, water access and waste management within their districts, their capacity to deliver often depends on external funding that arrives irregularly or in insufficient amounts. When assemblies resort to IGF allocation, they are effectively redirecting money that might otherwise support other critical services such as education or healthcare.

Systemic challenges still unresolved

The committee's statement also drew attention to three interconnected obstacles preventing effective sanitation delivery across Ghana:

• Equipment shortages: Many assemblies lack the machinery and tools needed to implement comprehensive sanitation programmes, from waste collection vehicles to water testing equipment.
• Water contamination: Despite Ghana's significant water resources, contamination remains a serious public health threat in many communities, requiring sustained investment in treatment and distribution infrastructure.
• Delayed DACF releases: Unpredictable disbursement of constitutionally allocated funds forces assemblies to make difficult choices between competing priorities and undermines long-term planning.

Why this matters for Ghana

Sanitation and water access are fundamental public health issues directly linked to disease prevention, economic productivity and educational outcomes. When local assemblies cannot rely on consistent government funding, the burden falls disproportionately on communities and local leadership to improvise solutions. While Prestea Huni Valley's initiative deserves recognition, it also reveals a systemic problem: Ghana cannot achieve its Sustainable Development Goals on sanitation and clean water if local authorities must continuously supplement inadequate central funding with their own resources.

The committee's focus on this assembly also raises important questions about equity. If only well-organised or resource-rich assemblies can afford to self-fund sanitation improvements, less affluent districts may fall further behind, deepening regional disparities in public health outcomes. For Ghana to make meaningful progress on sanitation, the parliamentary committee's commendation should serve as a catalyst for broader fiscal reforms and stricter enforcement of timely DACF releases to all local authorities.