President John Dramani Mahama has appealed to traditional authorities to support government’s efforts to tackle recurring flooding by preventing the allocation of lands for development on waterways, wetlands and other flood-prone areas.
The President said the involvement of chiefs is essential in promoting proper land-use practices and ensuring that sanitation and planning regulations are enforced within their communities.
He made the appeal on Tuesday, July 21, when the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs, Members of Parliament from the region and government appointees paid a courtesy call on him at the Jubilee House.
President Mahama noted that although heavy rainfall contributes to flooding, human activities such as the blockage of drains, construction on waterways, poor waste disposal and weak enforcement of planning regulations have significantly worsened the problem.
“The problem of flooding is not caused by rainfall alone. It is worsened when we block drains, when we develop over waterways and when we build on wetlands,” he said.
He urged chiefs to support the government’s flood control measures by discouraging developments that obstruct natural water channels and by promoting proper sanitation practices within their traditional areas.
The President’s appeal comes in the wake of the June 29 floods, which affected more than 38,000 people across the Greater Accra Region, displaced over 7,700 households and claimed at least 15 lives.
