President Mahama engages with national security over floods disaster

President John Dramani Mahama has chaired a National Security Council meeting at the Presidency in Accra, on the recent floods that affected seven regions of the country.

The Greater Accra Region was the most severely hit in the June 29 flood disaster, which led to the loss of 13 lives with six still missing.

The Council received updates from the Post-Flood Mitigation Task Force and its subcommittees on ongoing response efforts, recovery interventions, and measures aimed at strengthening Ghana’s resilience against future flood incidents.

President Mahama in his remarks noted that in the aftermath of the floods that affected a lot of the southern coastal areas of the country, he deemed it necessary for them to hold a National Security meeting to discuss the issues arising from the natural disaster.

He said it had become a recurring incident, but this particular incident was far worse than many of the previous ones they had experienced, partly due to the effects of climate change.

“Increasingly, we are witnessing heavier rainfall patterns every year, and this requires us to review and strengthen the mitigation measures we put in place to address the situation,” the President said.

He noted that beyond climate change, the pressures of urbanisation were also contributing to the challenge.

He said Accra, as the capital city, was expanding at a very rapid rate; adding that the increasing demand for land to build had resulted in encroachment on areas that were originally reserved for the passage and containment of water.

The President said they had asked the Ghana Armed Forces to get involved in flood mitigation efforts.

He said the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) and other relevant agencies were also actively involved in providing relief and distributing assistance to affected communities.

“We are therefore reviewing the measures taken so far and assessing additional interventions that need to be implemented going forward,” he stated.

He said prior to the floods, the Government had already established a task force to undertake preventive measures.

The President said the task force carried out some limited dredging of waterways, but the volume of rainfall experienced during this period was beyond what could be contained.

President Mahama said thankfully, the Minister of Finance had released funds from the contingency fund to support the mitigation measures that would be undertaken going forward.

“While we may not be able to completely eliminate flooding because it is a natural disaster that occurs in many parts of the world, we can take steps to reduce its impact and prevent it from becoming as devastating as what we have witnessed,” he said.

President Mahama said in this particular case, countries from Gabon to the Ivory Coast also experienced flooding and loss of lives, with some recording even higher levels of impact.

“As Christians say, in all things we give thanks. We remain hopeful that through collective efforts and the measures we are putting in place, we will be able to ease the difficulties faced by affected communities,” the President said.

GNA