A Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, Mr. Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah has called on residents of Accra to change their behaviour towards waste disposal and make conscious choices regarding their building sites to help reduce the perennial flooding in the national capital.  

Mr. Korsah made the appeal during an inspection tour of the beneficiary Metropolitan and Municipal Assemblies (MMAs) of the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) Project to assess the progress of ongoing desilting works and community engagements in the respective Assemblies.

The Deputy Minister said his Ministry has so far disbursed One Million Three Hundred Dollars ($1, 300,000) out of the over Three Million Dollars ($3,250,000) earmarked for disbursement to the Seventeen (17) GARID project beneficiary Assemblies to use for desilting of local drains and other drainage improvement works. He, however, observed that the huge investments of Government in flood control programmes are being undermined by inappropriate behaviour of some residents of Accra who engage in constructing buildings in waterways, and indiscriminate dumping of solid wastes which find their ways into drains in the city.

Mr. Korsah said the implementation of the GARID Project’s interventions, and all other Government’s flood mitigation measures will not succeed if such inappropriate behaviour and underlying attitudes do not change, noting that “For flood mitigation to succeed, citizens must change their behaviour. Our prospects as a city are grim if people do not change their attitudes towards solid waste management and their choices of building sites.”

The GARID Project Coordinator, Dr. Kwadwo Ohene Sarfoh, called on all stakeholders to support government efforts in finding lasting solutions to flooding and solid waste management challenges in Accra. He said Government alone cannot solve the sanitation and flooding problems in the country; it must be a shared responsibility. “Our flood control programmes in the city can only yield the desired results, if residents of Accra change their behavior; the Assemblies enforce the sanitation and building regulations; and the media help in sensitizing citizens to adopt the appropriate solid waste management and flood mitigation measures,” Dr. Ohene explained. 

The inspection tour took the Deputy Minister to major flood hotspots in the 17 beneficiary GARID Project Metropolitan and Municipal Assemblies where desilting works were being carried out. He expressed satisfaction about progress of work and commended the Assemblies for their dedication in executing the task.

The GARID Project is Government of Ghana Project being implemented with credit facility from the World Bank. The Project aims at addressing flooding in Odaw Basin of Greater Accra Region and focuses on improving drainage, solid waste management and provision of services and infrastructure in priority flood prone informal settlements within the basin.

The Minister for Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, Mr. Daniel Botwe, has made a fervent call for collaboration among Metropolitan and Municipal Assemblies (MMAs) along the Odaw River channel to effectively manage flood risk in Accra.

Mr. Botwe made the plea during an inspection tour of the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) Project beneficiary MMAs where he observed that the flood control efforts of Municipal Assemblies downstream the Odaw River are being undermined by the inactions of the Assemblies upstream. 

The Minister emphasized the need for a coordinated approach to mitigate flood risk and protect the well-being of the communities along the Odaw River. "Flooding is a pressing national issue that requires a collective action. I call on all MMAs along the Odaw River to collaborate closely to plan and implement effective flood control measures that will protect lives and properties of citizens," the Minister stated.

Mr. Botwe announced that Government through the GARID Project will soon establish an Inter-Jurisdictional Coordination Management Committee (ICMC) for the Odaw Drainage basin. The Committee, which will comprise the Project beneficiary Assemblies and other relevant state agencies, will be responsible for joint planning, implementation, management, and financing of flood control interventions along the Odaw River Basin. He said the process has already commenced and call on key stakeholders to collaborate with the Consultant and the Project staff to ensure successful completion of the task.

The Coordinator for the GARID Project, Dr. Kwadwo Ohene Sarfoh, said the implementation of successful flood mitigation interventions requires a unified front. He underscores the benefits MMAs stand to derive from collaborating in their fight against flooding in the city. "Collaboration among the Metropolitan Assemblies will allow for a coordinated planning, and implementation of flood mitigation measures. It will also create the platform for sharing of resources, expertise, and best practice in the collective interest of the Assemblies.," the Project Coordinator explained.

The Dean of the Greater Accra Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives, Mr. George Cyril Bray, on behalf of the MMAs, expressed support for the call for a joint effort in addressing flood risk in the national capital. "We the Metropolitan and Municipal Assemblies under the GARID Project will join forces and pool our resources and knowledge to develop sustainable flood control measures that protect our communities," the Dean indicated.

The GARID Project aims at improving drainage, solid waste management, and provision of infrastructure in priority flood-prone informal settlements within the Odaw River basin. The Ministry of Local Government, Decentralization and Rural Development is implementing the metropolitan governance, operation and maintenance improvement sub-component of the Project. This sub-component, among others, focuses on the establishment and institutionalization of inter-jurisdictional coordination; development of a joint Odaw River Basin management plan; development of operation and maintenance system for drainage infrastructure at local level; and establishment of a local capacity support grant to finance the technical needs of local governments.

The Minister for Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development (MLDGRD), Mr Dan Botwe, has paid a working visit to the beneficiary Metropolitan and Municipal Assemblies (MMAs) of the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) Project to assess the progress of the ongoing desilting works on local drains in the Assemblies.

During the tour, Mr. Botwe reiterated the importance of maintaining and improving drainage infrastructure to ensure the safety and well-being of the residents within the Municipalities, noting that "Regular maintenance of drains are of utmost importance to mitigate the risks of flooding and safeguard our communities. The grant provided by the GARID Project has been instrumental in supporting the Metropolitan Assemblies' efforts to carry out these essential works. I am pleased with the progress made so far and commend the dedication of the Assemblies in executing this crucial task".

The GARID Project Coordinator, Dr. Kwadwo Ohene Sarfoh, expressed satisfaction about how the MMAs are applying the grant to improve flood resilience of the city. He said, " The desilting and dredging of secondary and tertiary drains in beneficiary communities enables the achievement of quick-wins in our quest to enhance the resilience of the city. By improving the drainage system, we are reducing the vulnerability of our communities to flooding and building a more resilient city. This will go a long way to help achieve the Project goal”

The Grant Scheme is part of the interventions being implemented by the Project to help improve the operations and maintenance of priority secondary and tertiary drains in communities along the Odaw River channel. Part of the previous grant disbursed to the MMAs have been used for the preparation of Operations and Maintenance plans, development of comprehensive drainage network digital maps and asset registers, procurement of equipment such as hand-held GPS devices, Schmidt hammers, and laptop computers.

The Metropolitan and Municipal Chief Executives expressed their gratitude for the support received from the GARID Project. The Dean of the Greater Accra Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives, Mr. George Cyril Bray, said, "The grant from the GARID Project is an important contribution to our ongoing actions to mitigate floods in the respective jurisdictions where the project activities are being undertaken. This initiative is essential to maintain the functionality of our drainage systems and mitigate the risks posed by flooding. We appreciate the partnership with the GARID Project and remain committed to further enhancing the resilience of Accra."

Ahead of the tour, the Minister had elicited from the participating MMDAs and the LUSPA office, the flood hotspots in need of such mitigation measures. During the inspection tour, the Honourable Local Government Minister, along with the GARID Project Coordinator and the Metropolitan Chief Executives, visited some of these flood hotspots to verify the extent to which the desilting and dredging was resolving the challenges. The Minister interacted with the workers on the ground, commending them for their diligent efforts in executing the project.

At the end of the tour, Mr. Dan Botwe reassured the public of the government's commitment to addressing flooding challenges in Accra. “We have so far disbursed over One Million, Three Hundred Thousand Dollars (1,300,000.00) to the seventeen (17) GARID Project beneficiary MMAs to use to improve the operation and maintenance of secondary and tertiary drains in the Odaw River catchment. This excludes the other important interventions by the other Ministries involved in the GARID project, the Ministry of Works and Housing addressing the main Odaw channel as well as the principal Nima and Kaneshie tributaries. The Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources also supported these same MMDAs with solid waste collection equipment, and has been facilitating regular clean-up exercises in the communities, particularly those along the Odaw River channel. We will continue to support the MMDAs every year to ensure that incidence and impacts of flooding are reduced to the barest minimum in localities of the city where the Odaw River traverses,” The Minister indicated.

The GARID Project aims at improving drainage, solid waste management, and provision of infrastructure in priority flood-prone informal settlements within the Odaw River basin. The Project is being implemented by the Ministry of Works and Housing, Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, and Ministry Sanitation and Water Resources.