The Weija Water Treatment Plant will be temporarily closed today, Friday, December 19, from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. for critical maintenance works. This was disclosed in a statement issued by the Communications Department of Ghana Water Limited (GWL).

The maintenance is to allow engineers to carry out essential technical works to ensure the water system continues to function properly.

“We have deployed all necessary resources and will work diligently to complete the task on schedule,” parts of the statement read.

Areas to be affected by the exercise include parts of the Greater Accra Region, specifically Accra Central, Dansoman, Mallam, Weija, Gbawe, McCarthy Hill, Kaneshie, Odorkor, Korle Bu, Mamprobi and Chorkor.

Others include Abeka Lapaz, Tesano, Kokomlemle, Alajo, Nima, Maamobi, Dzorwulu, Abelemkpe and surrounding communities. The statement further apologised for any inconvenience the temporary disruption may cause.

Meanwhile, in September, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) received proposals from eight utility companies calling for a significant adjustment in utility tariffs to ensure they can fully operate at their capacities. Proposals from the electricity distributors and the water provider for the 2025–2029 tariff period cite rising operational costs and the need to maintain efficient service delivery.

The eight companies include the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Volta River Authority (VRA), Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo), Ghana Water Limited (GWL), Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), Ghana National Gas Limited, among others.

Ghana Water Limited has proposed a jump from GH¢5.28 per cubic metre to GH¢20.09 per cubic metre, seeking regulatory approval for a 281% increase in its water tariff. The company has blamed illegal mining activities (galamsey) for the 200% tariff increment proposal under the 2025–2030 Multi-Year Tariff Order.

As part of efforts to recoup its sunk funds, Ghana Water Limited has arranged for 15 defaulting customers to appear in court in a few days. This forms part of the company’s large-scale legal campaign to recover more than GH¢32 million owed by long-term defaulters.

The debt, the nation’s water supplier insists, undermines the effectiveness of its operations and the improvement of water service delivery.

Ing. Paul C. Akpanya, Regional Chief Manager of Ghana Water Limited (Eastern Region), made this statement on Tuesday, December 9, in Koforidua in the Eastern Region, during the launch of GWCL’s large-scale legal campaign to recover over GH¢32 million owed by long-term defaulters.

According to him, the 15 defaulters fall under Phase One of the campaign, with more rigorous and lawful measures expected to be adopted in the coming days to retrieve the debts.

“We will go the extra mile within the remit of the law to recover every arrear owed the company. This is essential for sustaining our operations and improving service delivery to the public,” he said.

GWL’s legal team said more names will be added as the campaign intensifies, targeting customers who have ignored repeated reminders, accumulated long-term arrears, or continued to refuse payment even after disconnection.

The action also covers individuals and businesses that have opted to rely on alternative water sources, such as boreholes and wells, without settling their outstanding bills.

The first batch of cases filed includes a mix of commercial and residential customers: Jilcom (Suhum Roundabout Shell Station), Petroleum & Construction Ltd., Constance Baafi, Ebenezer Larbi Opare, Yomboi E.A. Adu, Dora James Okyere, KAMA Group of Companies (Regional Director of Health), Paulina Donkor, Richard Boadu, Felicia Okyere Darko, F. A. Mpare, Taylor Posiah & Oduro, Patrick Ernest Obeng, and Kwame.

This is not the first time Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) has threatened or taken legal action against defaulters. The company has a history of warning customers and even announcing plans to prosecute defaulters as far back as 2023 and 2024, prior to the current campaign in December 2025.

In April 2023, GWCL issued a public warning that it would prosecute defaulting consumers who failed to settle their debts. The company stated that outstanding arrears were undermining its operations and that legal action was inevitable if payments were not made.

Exactly a year later, in 2024, the water supplier issued another warning announcing that it would publish the names of defaulting customers by the end of May 2024 if they failed to pay. Officials stressed that if this measure failed, they would not hesitate to initiate legal proceedings against debtors.

Meanwhile, GWCL’s naming approach is similar to that of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) in dealing with loan defaulters. The Bank of Ghana announced a ‘name and shame’ approach to promote responsible borrowing among wilful loan defaulters in a new directive. The financial institution announced this in a formal directive issued to all regulated financial institutions on August 14.

In the directive, the Bank of Ghana instructed all regulated financial institutions to publish the names of individuals who deliberately refuse to repay loans (wilful loan defaulters), despite having the means, twice a year in national newspapers and on their websites.

“All banks and other regulated lenders will be required to publish the names of such defaulters twice a year, on June 30 and December 31, in at least two national newspapers and on their official websites, using a format provided by the BoG.”

These measures form part of BoG’s latest regulatory actions to curb rising non-performing loans (NPLs) and reduce risks to the profitability, liquidity, and solvency of the banking sector. The central bank has already notified all regulated financial institutions of the directives and published explanatory notes for the public.

Additionally, the measures go beyond publication, as defaulters will also be barred from accessing loans from any accredited financial institution for up to five years.

“People in Ghana who deliberately refuse to repay loans… could soon be banned from borrowing from any licensed bank or financial institution for up to five years.”

“Borrowers listed as wilful defaulters on two or more occasions within ten years will face a mandatory five-year ban, or longer if the calculated prohibition period exceeds that duration,” it added.

The restrictions also target directors of companies found to have engaged in fund diversion, misrepresentation, falsification of accounts, or fraudulent transactions.

“Directors of companies that are wilful defaulters, where RFIs have identified siphoning/diversion of funds, misrepresentation, falsification of accounts, and fraudulent transactions with the directors’ consent or connivance, shall also be deemed wilful defaulters and prohibited from accessing credit for the same period as the defaulting company,” it said.