The World Bank has provided additional financing of $150 million to the Ghana government to improve flood risk management and solid waste management for over 2.5 million people in the Odaw River Basin of the Greater Accra Region.

In a press release copied to Ghana Business News, the World Bank said the Greater Accra Region accounts for over 40 percent of non-oil GDP and faces increased flood risks that may reduce the economic and social development potential of the country.

The Bank indicated that urban floods have become more frequent and of higher intensity due to fast-growing development and occupation of flood risk areas, inadequate and unmaintained drainage systems, and solid waste accumulation along waterways.

The flood event of June 3, 2015, affected 53,000 people and caused major damage and losses in the housing, transport, water, and sanitation sectors amounting to $55 million, with an estimated $105 million reconstruction cost. At the time, the GARID project – a dedicated programme of interventions – was designed to address these challenges, it said.

Pierre Laporte, the World Bank Country Director for Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, said: “The World Bank is happy to support Ghana in these times of macroeconomic challenges and to help contribute to a holistic flood management approach through this additional financing of GARID. This is critical to achieving the World Bank’s twin goals of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity, as well as increasing the resilience of African cities.

“This additional support fills a financing gap resulting from the triggering of the Contingency Emergency Response Component (CERC) in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the inclusion of resettlement compensation for approximately 2,800 project affected persons. It also addresses cost overruns for major infrastructure investments due to inflation and engineering requirements,” he said.

The Bank states that the project will continue to prioritize investments that enhance resilience to flood risks and improve solid waste management systems in targeted communities of the Odaw River Basin area.

“The planned flood mitigation infrastructure investments under GARID will directly reduce the flooding risks for urbanizing and economically productive areas of the Greater Accra Region, limiting the direct flood hazards on more than 138,000 people” said Catherine Lynch, Senior Urban Specialist and Task Team Leader for GARID project.

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