Accra Pro-Poor Water Connection Subsidy Study

Ghana’s urban population has more than tripled over the last three decades, outpacing the expansion of urban water infrastructure. In the Accra Metropolitan Area, fewer than 30 percent of households in low-income urban and peri-urban settlements have access to piped water services revealing equity gaps. Some of the main challenges with supplying water to low-income urban and peri-urban settlements include inadequate policy and legislative frameworks and unaffordable lump sum connection fees. To address these equity and inclusion challenges, USAID URBAN WASH is partnering with Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) to understand, document and disseminate lessons from the utility’s recent water connection subsidy projects implemented by its Low-Income Customer Support Department in Accra. These lessons will be used to inform future iterations of GWCL’s pro-poor programs, and potentially help other countries to learn from GWCL’s experience.

Related Resources:

• Pro-Poor Connection Subsidies to Improve Water Access in Ghana