Minister of Works and Housing, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has openly acknowledged that the readiness of flood control measures has been delayed due to resource limitations.
Speaking on the National Flood Control Programme’s goals, he stressed the urgent need for infrastructure enhancements to prevent recurring floods as the rainy season looms closer.
Mr. Nkrumah highlighted the financial challenges that have slowed down project implementation, citing funding gaps that prevented the timely completion of initiatives in 2023.
He noted that although the project is funded at $200 million by the World Bank, the actual expenditure has fallen short of this figure due to sluggish progress for various reasons.
In an effort to expedite the work, the minister disclosed recent meetings with project coordinators and contractors, urging them to accelerate their efforts.
He specifically mentioned pending flood control projects in the Kaneshie area of Accra, emphasising the necessity of engagements with locals, compensating affected individuals, and securing essential land areas and detention ponds.
“So until it is done, and to do that, we have to do the engagement with the people, pay compensation to project-affected people, secure the landlocks that we need. We have to do detention ponds that will arrest the water coming from the hilly areas of the Greater Accra region.”
“So there’s a lot of work that needs to be done. Not all of it has been done. We are running as much as we can. I’m sure you see me every time with the contractor, chasing them, trying to get their payments for them so that they can deliver.
“But we are behind schedule. We would do our best with the time and resources that we have and we would make a case for more resources and some more seriousness in getting the work done so that in the shortest possible time, it will be a thing of the past,” he said.
Acknowledging the ongoing delays, Mr. Nkrumah reassured the public of their commitment to working diligently within their current constraints.
However, he also made a plea for additional resources and increased seriousness in project execution to swiftly address the issue before it becomes a recurring problem.