Local‐level water conservation and management practices in rural communities: A case study in Dormaa Municipality, Bono Region, Ghana

Abstract

AbstractStudies on water conservation strategies and local approaches to water resource management among rural people in Ghana and sub‐Saharan Africa are scarce. This study examined water conservation and management practices among rural communities in Dormaa Municipality. We adopted a concurrent mixed‐method approach using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative and qualitative data were analysed using SPSS and ATLAS.ti, respectively. Binary logistic regression was used to predict the factors associated with the conservation of improved sources of water and reliability of water management by Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL). The findings show that 84.4% of the respondents conserve improved sources of water, and 83.6% do not rely on the management of water by the GWCL. Binary logistic regression shows that education, household size and income were significantly associated with the conservation of improved sources of water, while age, marital status and ownership of a house were associated with the reliability of water management by GWCL. Some of the challenges encountered in water management are the unavailability of persons committed to the management of boreholes and the non‐payment of electricity bills. The study recommends policy intervention in technical and material support for effective water conservation and management in rural communities.