A severe and prolonged water shortage in Accra’s Teshie-Nungua enclave has escalated into a public health emergency, with local clinics warning of spiralling infection risks and residents facing untenable living conditions.
The crisis stems from the ongoing shutdown of the critical Teshie-Nungua Desalination Plant, which has left entire communities without reliable access to clean water for months.
Areas including Teshie, Nungua, Baatsona, Spintex, Sakumono, and La are hardest hit.
The plant, which converts seawater to drinking water, was shut down by the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) in October 2025 over unpaid debts and unresolved contractual issues with its operators.
Despite GWCL’s assurances of a speedy resolution and temporary mitigation measures, the situation has only deteriorated.
The human cost is now starkly visible at healthcare facilities like the Camp 2 Health Centre in Teshie. Nurses describe a desperate scene where the lack of running water compromises basic sanitation, forcing staff to reuse unwashed bedsheets and leave patient washrooms unusable for hours.
“When somebody would have to use the washroom, and since there’s no water to flush immediately, the next person would also have to do that. And so there’s a pileup,” one nurse explained.
“So there really is going to be an infection spread.”
Healthcare workers are dipping into their own pockets to buy sachet water for patient care, a stopgap they say is unsustainable. The inability to maintain hygiene protocols is creating a dangerous environment for both patients and staff.
“We really have to show the buckets… because there is no water, sometimes you are tempted to use the sanitizer to wash your hands. And then too much of it too is not really good,” another nurse added.
Beyond the clinic walls, residents endure a daily ordeal.
“We have to travel distances to fetch water. Sometimes 20 cities a day for the gallons of water,” a resident of Teshie Camp 2 lamented.
The scarcity has driven up the price of sachet water, placing a heavy financial burden on households and raising fears of waterborne disease outbreaks as personal hygiene becomes a luxury.
The GWCL initially stated the shutdown was to avoid further contractual difficulties and ensure facility safety, promising a quick return to operations.
However, the prolonged inaction has transformed a utility problem into a full-blown health crisis, with communities left questioning when, or if, their taps will ever flow again.
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