The Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Alban Sumani Kingsford Bagbin, has questioned Ghana's middle income status, which was announced by the Ghana Statistical Service sometime last year. According to him, he was at loss as to why a country that had been declared a middle income one was still grappling with guinea worm and cholera. Speaking at a forum to mark the World Water Day in Kumasi on Tuesday, Bagbin noted that despite being declared a middle income country, Ghana was still facing challenges in the water sector. According to the Minister, pollution and encroachments of water bodies remained a challenge which must be overcome to make the country a truly middle income one. This year's World Water Day, which was observed worldwide, was celebrated in Ghana in Kumasi on the theme, "Water for Cities: responding to the urban challenge." The celebration attracted many stakeholders such as the security services, non-governmental organisations, chiefs and school children. Bagbin, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Nadowli West in the Upper West Region, lamented on how encroachers had taken away some portions of the Barekese dam, which supplies the bulk of water to the people of Kumasi. The Minister warned that all those who have their infrastructure at the catchment area would be demolished, because it was the intention of the government to expand the dam to meet the water demand in the Kumasi metropolis. Narrowing his presentation to water supply in the Ashanti Region, and Kumasi in particular, the sector Minister said the government was taking a very comprehensive approach in solving the water situation in the region. According to him, since 1990, a lot had been done for the region, saying a total of 1,090 boreholes had been sunk in 15 districts, out of 20,000 boreholes nationwide, through the sponsorship of the KFW and the government of Ghana. The Minister said the chunk of the country's budget on water sector was being financed by development partners, saying about 97% of the Ministry's budget comes from the donors. The sector Minister said Ghana had become the first country to achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDGs) by recording 74% in the water sector, hoping by the year 2015, the country would hit the required mark. The Minister said the Ashanti Region was leading in terms of water supply at 72.24% rate, as against the country's percentage of 62 %, as at the close of last year. He told the forum that the government would revise the small town water system to urban water in some selected towns like Nkwawie and other places. Source: Ghanaian Chronicle/Ghana