The Head of Public Relations and Communication at the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), Stanley Martey, says Accra continues to face a significant gap between water demand and supply, with no additional production capacity added to the capital’s water system since 2015.
Speaking to Arafat Musah on Morning Starr on Starr FM, Mr Martey explained that the city’s existing water treatment facilities were already struggling to meet demand before the shutdown of the desalination plant in the latter part of 2025 further worsened the situation.
He said the closure had left Accra relying on the Weija and Kpong treatment plants, placing additional pressure on the two facilities to meet the water needs of residents.
According to Mr Martey, the supply deficit has made it difficult for GWCL to provide water continuously to all communities, forcing the company to distribute the available supply according to demand and operational capacity.
He noted that some communities had historically received water more frequently than others because of their location within the distribution network, creating differences in the reliability of supply across the capital.
Mr Martey said the last major addition to Accra’s water production capacity was in 2015, when new facilities were commissioned, but demand has continued to grow since then.
He stressed that the absence of further capacity expansion had contributed to the persistent imbalance between the amount of water available and the volume required by consumers.
The GWCL official explained that the company had been compelled to redistribute water to areas previously served by the desalination plant, further stretching the available supply.
He said the company was working on a water demand management programme that would divide affected communities into zones and establish a schedule for water distribution.
Under the proposed arrangement, residents in some affected areas should expect water only two to three days a week, while the company works to ensure a more equitable distribution of the limited supply.
Mr Martey also urged consumers to store water whenever it was available to help them cope with interruptions in supply.
He maintained that addressing Accra’s water challenges would require effective management of the existing supply, alongside measures to address the persistent gap between production capacity and growing demand.
Story By Pamela Quayson
