The former General Secretary of the General Agricultural Workers Union (GAWU), Edward Kareweh, has criticised the government’s response to the ongoing drought in northern Ghana.
He also accused it of failing to implement effective solutions in a timely manner.

In an interview on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, Mr Kareweh noted that public officials tend to delay taking action until the situation has already significantly worsened, and sometimes fail to act altogether.

"Drought is something we should expect in this country. We see signs of it coming. It’s not just the lack of rain that defines a drought, but the absence of irrigation to mitigate its impact.

"For instance, if there's a week without rain and no irrigation is available for certain crops, those crops will suffer. That’s drought for those particular crops. To prevent this, we need to ensure that water is available so that when the rains don’t come, we can irrigate those crops," he said on Wednesday.

Mr Kareweh also highlighted the inadequate irrigation infrastructure nationwide.

According to him, the government must be deliberate about constructing new ones and upgrading existing ones to meet the demands of farmers.

“We have been talking about building irrigation dams—not just under this government, but even in previous administrations.

"Many of the dams we use today were built in the 1970s by the Acheampong regime. What we need now is to rehabilitate them," he told co-host Kojo Yankson.

He specifically criticised the government's failure to construct the Pwalugu irrigation dam, which he believes could have alleviated the current crisis.

"If the government had built the Pwalugu irrigation dam, the effects of this drought could have been significantly mitigated. But instead, as things have now fallen apart and farmers have lost their livelihoods, the government is offering $500 million in support.

"It’s troubling that within just a few months, the government can mobilise $500 million, yet over three and a half years, they couldn’t find $993 million to build the dam. This raises serious questions about whether the government is genuinely seeking solutions," he noted.

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Mr Kareweh further criticised the government's proposed measures to assist affected farmers, describing them as inadequate.

“Now, with this money, they plan to give some farmers cash for their losses, but that’s grossly insufficient. They also mentioned providing inputs, but even if they give inputs today, some farms no longer exist. For those who do, applying inputs at this stage would be a waste. It won’t change the situation."

He also questioned the effectiveness of the government's "One Village, One Dam" initiative, which was intended to provide water for agricultural use.

"We claimed to have built 574 dams and celebrated that achievement, but where are these dams? There’s no evidence on the ground to show that they have played any role in mitigating the drought.

"Not a single dam has been confirmed to have helped farmers during this drought, and the government has not been able to demonstrate their impact."