The Ghanaian Times newspaper yesterday published a story from the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) advising the public to patronise only registered sachet and bottled water manufactured in Ghana and bear the FDA product registration numbers.
This comes against the backdrop of claims that certain sachet water sold on the market contains microbes or unwholesome materials. The FDA has the sole responsibility to protect consumers, as mandated by the Public Health Act, 2012 (Act 851).
The Food and Drugs Authority of Ghana is the National Regulatory Body under the Ministry of Health responsible for the regulation of food, drugs, etc. They are to ensure adequate and effective standards in their production.
Dr. Peter Takyi Preprah, Director for Field Operations of the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), during a presentation on the 2021 Population and Housing Census (PHC) Data on Basic Sanitation in Ghana stated that some sachet water products sold in Ghana are contaminated with faecal matter, raising questions about the regulation of the products.
According to him, 34.1 percent of household drinking water sources were contaminated with faeces. He asked the appropriate authorities and Ghanaians at large to pay close attention to the sachet and bottled water they patronise.
In a subtle reaction, the Chief Executive Officer of FDA, Mrs. Delese Mimi Darko has stated that her outfit pays strict adherence at the manufacturing premises of packaged water (bottled and sachet) and their registration.
She said inspections were done in accordance with the current Codes of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and production processes, including Filtration or Reverse Osmosis which removed extraneous material, and UV Sterilisation which destroyed harmful pathogens which might have been present
It has been established that Ghanaians are increasingly depending on sachet water as their main source of drinking water. The GSS reports that as high as 71% of the population of Greater Accra was depending on sachet water.
The Greater Accra, Western, Central, Eastern and Ashanti regions have surpassed the national average of sachet water usage, which is 37.4%, as the other regions inch closer to the abovementioned regions.
It is, therefore, very important for the Ghana Standard Authority and FDA to up their game in the regulation of the products.
The startling revelations made by the Ghana Statistical Service should be taken seriously and should not be seen as an avenue for the stakeholders to throw accusations against each other.
Our bodies use water in all the cells, organs and tissues, to help regulate body temperature and maintain other bodily functions, therefore, the water that enters our body should be wholesome.
The Chronicle believes it is rather the time for sober heads to dialogue and find lasting solutions to the problem, and we count on institutions run by the taxpayers money to be up and doing.
