As the rainy season sets in, the Ghana Institution of Engineering has warned against the potential loss of lives and property to floods.
The institution has called on various stakeholders to take proactive measures to avoid any disaster.
Speaking on JoyFM’s Midday, the Executive Director of the institution, David Nyante highlighted the vulnerability of infrastructure and silted drains while advocating for swift interventions to combat floods.
“Interventions take time. Sometimes many years. Now we have climate change also in the equation. We have silted up infrastructure and this is what we are calling for authorities to sit up and prepare so that we don’t have any crisis on our hands.
“We can share information about safe-havens. The flood-prone areas we should know. What action needs to be taken, we should know. NADMO should be prepared way ahead of time. They shouldn’t be reactive but proactive,” he said.
Earlier, the Works and Housing Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah indicated it was too late to combat the floods this year due to inadequate resources.
Highlighting the fiscal constraints hampering project execution, Mr Nkrumah revealed that funding challenges hindered the completion of projects in 2023.
The Minister stated that the project is a $200 million project funded by the World Bank, adding “But what has actually been released or spent is not up to two hundred million dollars but the implementation has been slow for a number of reasons.”
He revealed that there are still flood control projects that have yet to be undertaken in the Kaneshie area in Accra.
“So there’s a lot of work that needs to be done. Not all of it has been done. We are running as much as we can. I’m sure you see me every time with the contractor, chasing them, trying to get their payments for them so that they can deliver.
“But we are behind schedule. We would do our best with the time and resources that we have and we would make a case for more resources and some more seriousness in getting the work done so that in the shortest possible time, it will be a thing of the past,” he said.
The National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), despite its meagre resources, has started some education to sensitize residents in various communities on what to do in flooding situations.
According to the NADMO Public Relations Officer, George Ayisi, residents of various areas have been encouraged to engage in desilting of drains, which will prevent flooding.
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