President John Dramani Mahama has ordered a coordinated crackdown on blocked drainage systems and announced emergency relief funding for victims of Monday’s devastating floods in Accra following an aerial inspection of the affected areas.
Speaking after touring flood-hit communities on June 29, 2026, the President said the government would convene a National Security Council meeting to coordinate a more robust response to the capital’s recurring flooding problem.
He said Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), in collaboration with the Ministry of Works, Housing and Water Resources, would be tasked with identifying all blocked drainage channels for immediate clearance.
“We’re asking every district to identify, together with the Works and Housing Ministry, where the blockages in the channels are… so that we can earmark those places for removal,” he said.
President Mahama stressed that the exercise would go beyond demolishing illegal structures, noting that debris from demolished buildings must also be removed to prevent continued obstruction of waterways.
“We’ll not only break the houses. We have to move the rubble out of the way because there’s no use breaking a house and leaving the rubble in the waterways,” he said.
The President said tackling Accra’s perennial flooding would require both immediate enforcement measures and long-term structural reforms. As part of the broader strategy, he revealed plans to decongest the capital by developing a new growth centre outside Accra.
According to him, the government is preparing a 20-year development plan that will relocate major public institutions from Accra while creating a new urban centre with the necessary infrastructure to attract residents and investment.
“We’ll do the roads, bring the water and electricity so that it eases the pressure on Accra as a city,” he said.
President Mahama also expressed sympathy to families and businesses affected by the floods, describing the scale of destruction as extensive. He commended the Ghana Armed Forces, the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), the Ghana Police Service, the Ministry of Works and Housing, other emergency response agencies and the 48 Engineers Regiment for their rescue efforts, including the evacuation of stranded residents by boat.
He further directed the Minister of Finance to release funds from the Contingency Fund to support immediate relief efforts for those affected by the disaster.
The President also called for a change in public attitudes towards environmental management, warning that persistent neglect of drainage systems and waterways continues to exacerbate flooding in the capital.
“This time should be different,” he said, calling for sustained action to bring an end to Accra’s recurring flood crisis.
