NPP’s One-Village One-Dam is a failure - Former Pro-Vice Chancellor of UDS

Former Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University for Development Studies (UDS), Professor David Millar has described as a failure government's One-Village One-Dam initiative which is being implemented now in the Northern part of the country.

Government earmarked GH¢94.5 million in the 2018 Budget for the implementation of the project in regions of the north.

The implementation of the project however has been met with some level of apprehension following what residents and development watchers have described as dugouts and not dams.

The few completed projects are defect-ridden with some already getting washed away after few rains while deaths have been recorded at some sites.

Speaking in a documentary interview by Bolga based A1 Radio’s reporter Joshua Asaah and monitored by MyNewsGh.com, Professor David Millar, a development consultant and founder of the Millar Open University said the implementation of the One Village One Dam programme has been characterized by misplaced priorities, inappropriate siting and poor construction which have virtually negated the purpose and essence of the initiative.

“Some of them are misplaced. You don’t go giving a village that has a dam another dam and go to a village that has a whole river that doesn’t dry and give them a dam” he said.

He refuted claims that the dams over time would expand and take shape to serve its purpose saying “You don’t construct dams like that. It’s rather the first early years that it’s able to sustain itself, it also ages. It becomes less and the delivery reduces with age. A dam is most efficient in its early ages. The idea is warp” he reiterated.

Professor Millar who was also a member of the National Development Planning Commission that drafted a 40 years development plan lauded the idea behind the initiative but was quick to add that the implementation is a failure.

“It is all part of the blames that we have for manifestos. If you want to do a plan based on manifesto, you would have these problems” he added.

While scoring government 20% on the implementation of the programme, Prof. Millar impressed on government to rethink and restrategize the way forward for the 1V1D initiative.