Commentary on Bagre Dam Spillage

The National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) last week confirmed that heavy rains in the Northern parts of the country and the spillage of water from dams in Burkina Faso have destroyed farms and infrastructure in the north. According to NADMO the rains had been persistent for three weeks and the situation worsened when water from the Bagre dam in Burkina Faso was released into the Black and White Volta early this month.

The deadly floods, as reported by Radio Ghana said, seven people had lost their lives in the northern region whilst crops such as maize, rice and millet had been completely destroyed. Apart from the lost of human lives and food crops as well as the displacement of many rural people living very close to the banks of the Volta River, one cannot rule out health implications.

The floods, no doubt, could lead to outbreaks of diarrhea, malaria and other communication diseases. This has prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to caution countries affected by the floods in West Africa including Ghana to be alert while calling for funding to respond to the emergency.

While no outbreaks have been reported so far in affected countries including Ghana and Mali, there have been increase reports of malaria and diarrhea, but the WHO cautioned that a complete picture of how many people are suffering health conditions due to the flooding has not been obtained.

The floods could also lead to malnutrition even though it may be argued that many people living along the banks may have poor nutrition before the crisis but with the present situation, coupled with limited access to health facilities, mothers, children and the aged risk not only getting ill due to lack of services, but also getting malnourished.

Since WHO's country offices in West Africa require additional resources to address the emergency as well as for reconstructing damaged health centres and improving medical supplies, NADMO-should not only dispatch an assessment team to the three northern regions but should also ensure that all the required human resources and other logistics are in place to contain the situation.

If reports indicate that in Burkina Faso one hundred and fifty people have been affected by floods and are seeking refuge in schools, churches and other public buildings and the government has launched an appeal for over US$4,000 for the country for medicine, dialysis machines and other supplies if these reports are anything to go by, then NADMO must sit up and do right thing now.

It is a very worrisome situation that further weakens the already impoverished population and we must not sit down to allow the situation to take us back to in terms of the fight against poverty. It is the expectation of all Ghanaians that the team will work with dispatch with the relevant UN agencies and non-governmental Organisations to recommend the appropriate measures to quickly deal with the situation before it escalates.