National Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) Plan.

This National Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) Plan sets out the direction and implementation framework for the legal and institutional development to achieve the overall goal of the water resources management part of the National Water Policy NWP). Water Resources Management in Ghana is based on a long-term commitment to IWRM starting even before the adoption of the Ouagadougou Ministerial Statement on IWRM in 1998 by the ECOWAS countries. Since then Ghana has developed its IWRM framework along the lines of international recognised IWRM principles. This Plan outlines the need for the sustainable management of all the river basins and related natural resources in line with the mandate of the Water Resources Commission (WRC) as defined by Act 522 of 1996 and in the context of emerging climate change and transboundary issues. The Plan should also be viewed as an integral part of the stipulations in the WRC Act to “propose plans for utilization, conservation, development and improvement of water resources” in adherence with the overall National Water Policy.
The Plan provides sections with summaries of the current baseline situation with respect to the socio-economic context, the bio-physical context, the water resources potential, the water demands, the sharing of water with neighbouring countries as well as the current management framework as defined by legal instruments in place and roles and functions of institutions. Major risks of depletion and degradation arise from uncontrolled catchment degradation, pressure due to climate change and climate variability and increasing population growth and urbanisation. The Plan sets out challenges (among which inadequate enforcement of existing regulations and permit conditions, lack of data and information, lack of water pollution, catchment degradation and poor water quality regulation, transboundary issues) for water resources management and an action programme to face these challenges expressed in six overarching policy objectives: Strengthen the regulatory and institutional framework for managing and protecting water resources for water security and enhancing resilience to climate change; Enhance public awareness and education in water resource management issues; Improve access to water resources knowledge base to facilitate water resources planning and decision making; Improve transboundary and international cooperation in the management of shared water resources; Ensure gender equity in water resources management and planning; Develop and operationalise a national Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system to track progress in IWRM implementation. In broad terms, policy and overall oversight and coordination is provided by the Water Directorate (WD), while the WRC carries out the practical implementation of IWRM with the assistance of other stakeholders. At the decentralised level, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), NGOs/Community Based Organisations (CBOs) and other civil society groupings that work together within a river basin are engaged to take charge and coordinate water resources management activities as far as feasible following the principle of “management at lowest appropriate level”. This is done through the River Basin Boards (RBBs) as the water resources management structure for each major river basin in the country. Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) are key elements in the implementation of the IWRM Plan. Operational and progress indicators (Output Indicators) shall be identified as part of the Plan implementation. The Plan will be evaluated as part of the evaluation system of the Water Sector Strategic Development Plan.
Annex A summarizes schematically the themes, objectives and strategies of the Plan.