Educational workshop on water safety- Upper East Region

A workshop on water safety has been organized by the Ghana Standards Authority, GSA, for locally bagged and bottled water producers association in Bolgatanga on the theme “the quality of bagged and bottled water: the certification process”.

The Regional Director of the Ghana Standards Authority, Aquinas Asolmia, took participants through the certification process by the Ghana Standard Authority.

 He said the GSA, is the umbrella body for all standards in the country and beyond and has the mandate to ensure that water produced for consumption meet the required standards for certification.

 He said though there are other regulatory bodies, it is mandatory that producers get their products certified with the GSA logo.

 He advised that water filters are not to be washed but rather changed weekly and work premises kept clean.

 Mr Asolmia said the GSA will soon embark on an inspection tour to close down products and shops that do not meet their standards.

He expressed worry about how the market was being flooded with sub-standard products putting the consumer’s life at risk, hence, the need for the workshop.

The overall objective was to engage persons involved in the water production to standardize their operation to avoid running counter with the law.

 Standards, he explained, are simply guidelines laid down for any producer to follow in order to meet the requirement for certification.

Mr Asolmia explained the differences between mineral water or hard water and that of treated water or soft water in the production of wholesome water for consumption, saying, it is not all clean water that is safe for human consumption.

 He further explained that water is a mixture of many elements that must pass through the necessary process to be considered wholesome.

According to him, the primary aim of every producer is to make money but the safety of the consumer is paramount.

He advised all water producers to acquire the reverse osmoses machine which removes odours, bacteria and other trace minerals in the production process.

 During an open forum, participants lamented that the certification process of GSA and that of Food and Drugs Authority, FDA, were the same and expressed grave concern about the high cost involved in the process of certification which, they noted, was collapsing their business.

 The Regional chairman of the bagged and bottled water association, Rev. Oppong Kyekyeku in his closing remarks, commended the Regional Director of the GSA for organizing the workshop and urged water producers to adhere to laid down regulations set out by the regulatory bodies.

 Rev. Kyekyeku also pledged to strengthen the association to take up the challenge. 

GBC