An engineering lecturer at the Bolgatanga Technical University Dr. George Dordah says government’s irrigational initiative, 1 Village 1 Dam was not well thought out.
Speaking in an interview on Breakfast Today, Dr. Dordah said the projects would not have become white elephants if government had thought through the initiative and consulted broadly.
His comment comes on the back of the governing New Patriotic Party’s (NPP’s) pledge to rehabilitate and expand irrigation schemes include the 1V1D projects.
The 1V1D was among key promises the NPP ahead of the 2016 elections which it won.
The initiative was targeted at boosting agriculture particularly in Northern Ghana and ensuring food security in the country through an all-year-round farming.
However, most of the dams have been poorly built and have been found to not fit for purpose.
In its quest for extension for its mandate, the NPP is promising, “rehabilitation, modernisation and expansion of selected existing public irrigation schemes, including those undertaken through the ‘One Village, One Dam (1V1D)’ initiative to increase the irrigation area”.
It is further pledging to construct more irrigable dams under the initiative to improve irrigation of for farming communities.
But Dr. Dordah argued that some of the dams have not only been poorly constructed but unsuitably sited due to lack of proper planning and feasibility studies.
“I think what they failed to do is to properly assess the areas that they were going to build these dams,” he stated.
He believes thorough geological and topographical study would have saved the country from spending its scarce resources to construct dams not capable of containing water.
“You have to look at the topography of the area. We are talking about the landscape. And it is not possible that every village will have a suitable landscape to have a dam. You have to look at the geology of the area.”
He continued, “And I’m talking about doing a geotechnical study to see even the soil that exists, is it strong enough to carry the weight of water? I mean, are there rocks in there to be able to hold the water? Then you can also talk about hydrography.
Is there enough catchment to create the avenue for water to build up?”
He wants the party to consider only those capable of holding water in its redevelopment plan if it wins the elections.
