The Dutch government has decided to support Ghana with the needed funds and technical expertise to improve the country�s water supply, enhance urban planning and improve sanitation.
It would also support reproductive health, enhance food security and promote constitutional governance in the country.
The visiting Minister of International Cooperation of The Netherlands, Mr Ben Knapen, made this known Tuesday during a courtesy call on the Vice-President, Mr John Dramani Mahama, at the Castle, Osu to finalise the details of the support.
The visit is part of the launching of the new Dutch development policy on water, which Ghana is a beneficiary.
He has already visited the Weija Water Treatment Plant and the Oblogo Landfill Site to familiarise himself with the situation on the ground
Mr Knapen said the Dutch government had selected Ghana to be among the few countries which would continue to benefit from the Dutch development support
He said the Dutch government would also promote private participation in the water and sanitation sectors and also encourage public-private partnership.
Mr Knapen commended Ghana for growing the economy, respecting the rule and law and constitutional governance.
In his response, the Vice-President said The Netherlands was one of the strong partners of Ghana, and indicated that the recent cooperation was highly appreciated.
He noted that Ghana had made gains in achieving several targets under the Millennimum Development Goals, but water and sanitation still lagged behind.
He said the government made some effort to dig boreholes in the rural areas, which had addressed the water situation in many rural areas, but the urban areas still had some problem of water supply.
On sanitation, he said, Ghana could only achieve 18 percent of the expected 50 percent improvement in sanitation.
Vice-President Mahama hinted that the Dutch government had again decided to support the expansion of the Tamale Hospital and collaborate with Ghana to address the issue of illegal migration.
Mr Mahama described the meeting as very fruitful and expressed the hope that it would, �it will help us to move the relationship to the next level�.
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