Multi-Agency Flood Control Campaign Intensifies Across Accra Ahead of Peak Rainy Season
A large-scale, multi-agency flood control and drainage desilting campaign has been intensified across Accra as a coalition of government bodies and private companies race to prepare the capital for the peak of the rainy season.
The three-day emergency intervention, spearheaded by Zoomlion Ghana Limited in partnership with the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Dredge Masters Ghana Ltd, and FeDems Group Ltd, targeted some of Accra’s most flood-prone neighbourhoods, including Mallam, Weija, Teshie-Nungua, Kaneshie, Lapaz, and the Ofankor Barrier enclave.
Ricky Anokye Frimpong, Zoomlion’s Greater Accra Regional Manager, said the campaign had generated strong public participation and visible improvements in drainage conditions. “Indiscriminate waste disposal remains a major cause of flooding; we urge residents to adopt proper waste management practices,” he said.
The exercise deployed heavy excavators and dredging machinery alongside hundreds of sanitation workers and community volunteers, including market women and residents who joined in clearing silt, plastics, and debris from blocked waterways. Monitoring officers have been stationed across all 29 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the Greater Accra Region to track flood-vulnerable spots and coordinate routine maintenance.
The intervention is particularly significant for the Weija corridor, where desilting operations produced notable improvements in drainage capacity. The area has long been identified as critically vulnerable, not only to flooding but also to threats to the city’s water infrastructure. A recent warning from environmental scientists highlighted the danger that the McCarthy Hill dump poses to the Weija Dam, the primary water source for millions of Accra residents, underscoring the interconnected nature of the capital’s infrastructure challenges.
George Kpakpo Allotey, the Municipal Chief Executive for Ablekuma West, issued a stark warning to residents who have built on waterways. “The assembly would not tolerate encroachment on waterways; illegal structures could be demolished to protect lives and infrastructure,” he said.
Dennis Quarshie, an Assemblyman for the Ga North Municipality, described the intervention as “timely given the area’s vulnerability to flooding,” reflecting the relief felt by communities that have suffered repeated flood damage in previous rainy seasons.
The campaign is widely seen as a model of public-private partnership in disaster preparedness. Dr Joseph Siaw Agyepong, Executive Chairman of the Jospong Group, Zoomlion’s parent company, has been instrumental in mobilising resources for the exercise. The involvement of private sector heavy equipment and technical expertise has allowed the campaign to cover far more ground than government agencies could manage alone.
Yet the exercise also exposes a persistent structural problem. Accra’s drainage infrastructure remains inadequate for a city of its size, and the annual cycle of flooding, emergency desilting, and further flooding continues unabated. Without sustained investment in permanent drainage solutions and rigorous enforcement against building on waterways, the gains from campaigns like this one risk being eroded within months.
The Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council has indicated that it will maintain the monitoring infrastructure established during the campaign, but whether the political will exists to sustain enforcement beyond the immediate rainy season remains an open question.
Image Source: GHANAIAN TIMES
