Water, water, every where,Nor any drop to drink.Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Today is World Water Day and to mark this annual event, GhanaBlogging is making the noble effort of highlighting the problem of water in Ghana and the world.
I thought long and hard about the best way to explore water issues associated with Accra life. I thought about pictures of polluted water in choked gutters in my neighbourhood or perhaps a vivid description of the very pungent 'water' my nostrils encountered in the ironically nicknamed Lavender Hill last week. In the end, I have opted for a post on the essential everyday items one needs to tackle water shortage blues associated with living in urban Ghana from my perspective.
Item 1: The Polytank
Polytank is a brand name for a water storage tank that has become a generic term in Ghana. A bit like 'cellophane', 'aspirin' and (believe it or not!) 'heroin'. Polytanks are essential for all homes in Accra. First of all, not every area in Accra is fortunate to have steady water flow and even in the very rare areas where water flows 24 hours, shortages are inevitable! Some years ago, my 'hood was supposedly such an area but my parents still had the foresight to get a polytank. Our polytank has multiplied into three and these have buffered us from recent water shortages. Interestingly, one problem we recently encountered is not realising that our neighbourhood was griped by water shortages until even our three polytanks finally emptied!
I thought long and hard about the best way to explore water issues associated with Accra life. I thought about pictures of polluted water in choked gutters in my neighbourhood or perhaps a vivid description of the very pungent 'water' my nostrils encountered in the ironically nicknamed Lavender Hill last week. In the end, I have opted for a post on the essential everyday items one needs to tackle water shortage blues associated with living in urban Ghana from my perspective.
Item 1: The Polytank
Polytank is a brand name for a water storage tank that has become a generic term in Ghana. A bit like 'cellophane', 'aspirin' and (believe it or not!) 'heroin'. Polytanks are essential for all homes in Accra. First of all, not every area in Accra is fortunate to have steady water flow and even in the very rare areas where water flows 24 hours, shortages are inevitable! Some years ago, my 'hood was supposedly such an area but my parents still had the foresight to get a polytank. Our polytank has multiplied into three and these have buffered us from recent water shortages. Interestingly, one problem we recently encountered is not realising that our neighbourhood was griped by water shortages until even our three polytanks finally emptied!
The water-tanks that buffer water shortages...well, until they also run out!
Item 2: When the Polytank fails, enter the yellow jerrycan
One of the must-have accessories in Accra at the moment is the bright yellow cooking oil jerrycan affectionately known as the Kufuor gallon. It was during the Kufuor administration that these oil gallons supposedly became synonymous with water shortages but are causing quite the stir lately. I must say they are perfect for water storage. Leaving work after dark, you are always bound to find someone outside nicodemusly filling a car boot full of gallons destined for a water-deficient part of town. During a dire water shortage a few weeks ago EVERYONE at work had at least one gallon with them!
Some water gallons I caught on my camera phone outside a mechanics workshop I visited today. We told him I was highlighting the problem of water shortages in Accra and he asked if we were journalists...citizen journalists perhaps?!
Item 3: The Water Sachet
When it hit the Ghanaian scene a few decades ago, water in a sachet seemed like the best thing since plantain and beans. Before the water sachet, water was available in traffic from recycled plastic cups filled by large gourds....apparently. The plastic water sachet is now more of a bane than a boon given the shocking masses of plastic waste it generates! In fact, in one of my earliest posts I highlighted the work of an amazing company Trashy Bags on tackling the plastic waste problem in Ghana through innovative recycling.
Unfortunately, sachet water/bottled water is essential as a source of drinking water in any home. Even if you are lucky to have water flowing through your taps can you trust where your water is coming from? A friend of mine described how he discovered the dubious water delivered to his home by tanker was mysteriously hard and refused to lather. In the end he had to wash in sachet water! Let's not even talk about drinking that hard water.
Speaking of trust, do we actually know the source of water sachets? A few years ago, an undercover TV report revealed how some water sachet companies advertising filtered mineral water were actually preparing sachets in people's bathrooms and were neither filtered nor hygienic!
The humble water sachet
Indeed, unless you have your own private reservoir of chlorinated water, you are bound to be affected in some way or another by water shortages in Ghana. Sadly, solutions are nowhere in sight. Or do you have one you would like to share?
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