The Ga South Municipal Assembly held a conference on Thursday 27th February, 2020 on its proposal with stakeholders to develop a Flower City and Public Recreational Park around the Densu River in order to protect the water source from the activities of some encroaches
The Densu River is a 116 km long river in Ghana rising in the Atewa Range and currently supplying water to some four million people in and around the community.
The proposed project is inline with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) initiated by the government of Ghana.
And aside improving the quality of the water, the project is targeted to create at least a thousand jobs for the teeming youth.
Speaking at the conference, the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Hon. Ishmael Ashitey said the project was in line with the president’s one district one factory programme.
He was optimistic it will promote a balanced lifestyle for the people of the city and beyond as well as jobs for the youth.
He emphasized that the project will keep the city clean and protect the largest water body in Accra from encroachers.
He called on the implementation bodies, such as the Ghana water Resource Commission, the Ghana Water Company and the Ga South Municipal Assembly to ensure speedy completion of the project.
The Municipal Chief Executive, (MCE) for the Ga South Assembly in Accra, Hon. Joseph Nyarni Stephen went on to say that, when he took office 2017, the Assembly had issues to contend with in relation to the Densu River, and there were several reports on the encroachment of the greenbelt.
As a result, he realised the need to halt the increasing levels of human activities which had a high tendency of polluting the river.
Consequently, he had to undertake a demolishing exercise on structures that were springing up in the enclave.
The Hon. I said he, however, noticed that in recent times the measures he had put in place are no longer sustainable in the protection of the water body.
To this point, he said the General Assembly has passed a resolution for the rezoning of the enclave to establish a Flower City and a Public Recreational Park at Danchira.
“This we believe is the best alternative to safeguarding the quality of water that is supplied into the homes of people in the western part of Accra”.
Hon. Joseph said the Assembly had extensively discussed with the chiefs and the people of the area, and they had the blessing of the stakeholders to execute the project.
He went further to say that he wished to call on everyone in the area to consider the threat to the Densu River as one to their very existence and that of future generations.
In the General Assembly meeting for the day, he encouraged the stakeholders to propose further suggestions in order to affirm the success of the proposed project.
The MCE finally stated that the process would be transparent to the stakeholders.
And that even though previous leadership did not do much with the issue; he was considering it, a priority.
He said so far the responses from the chiefs from series of meetings were positive.
Credit: Nii Okpoti Odamttem
