Sierra Leone: Council of Churches Urges Govt. to Address causes of water pollution

By Issac Unisa Kamara

The Council of Churches in Sierra Leone (CCSL) has called on the Government of Sierra Leone to take action against those who violate and polute water catchment areas.

The president of the Council of Churches in Sierra Leone (CCSL), Rev. Henry Samuels, said Monday during a Press Conference held at CCSL Head Office in Freetown, that Churches in Sierra Leone, through CCSL joined faith communities all over the world, in collaboration with Ecumenical Water Network to celebrate the day.

People queue for water in Freetown. Photo credit: Politico SL

He said provision of safe and affordable water is a Human Right issue recognized in International Law, through Human Rights Treaties and Declarations Sierra Leone subscribed to.

“It is incumbent on any Government to see to it that clean, safe, accessible and affordable water is available for personal and domestic uses of the people it governs,” he noted, adding that CCSL is concerned an estimated fraction of over two thirds of the population is without adequate supply of portable clean and affordable water.

“We are aware of the challenges and constraints of the companies that are entrusted with the supply of this essential commodity to the population of Sierra Leone, but these challenges have remained for far too long and no serious attempts are made towards solving them,” he pointed, adding that the provision of water for the vulnerable population of the nation must be a priority.

According to the United Nations, there is not a global water shortage as such, but individual countries and regions need to urgently tackle the critical problems presented by water stress.

The UN warned water has to be treated as a scarce resource, with a far stronger focus on managing demand, adding that integrated water resources management provides a broad framework for governments to align water use patterns with the needs and demands of different users, including the environment.