The Ministry of Finance has released GH¢350 million from the Contingency Fund to support emergency relief efforts and flood mitigation projects following the recent devastating floods that affected several parts of Ghana, particularly the Greater Accra Region.
The funds have been transferred into a dedicated National Disaster Management Committee account to finance the government’s National Emergency Flood Response Programme, which is aimed at providing immediate support to affected communities while strengthening measures to reduce future flooding.
The release follows a directive by President John Dramani Mahama, who instructed the Minister for Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, to urgently mobilise resources from the Contingency Fund to respond to the disaster.
According to the government, the intervention demonstrates its commitment to delivering swift humanitarian assistance to flood victims while investing in long-term flood prevention initiatives.
The recent floods, triggered by hours of torrential rainfall, caused widespread destruction across several communities, especially in Accra, where homes, businesses, roads and public infrastructure were submerged.
The disaster disrupted transportation, stranded hundreds of commuters, destroyed properties worth millions of cedis, claimed dozens of lives and displaced many families.
Emergency response teams from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), the Ghana National Fire Service, the Ghana Police Service and the Ghana Armed Forces were deployed to rescue affected residents and support recovery efforts.
Following the Finance Minister’s directive, the Controller and Accountant-General established a dedicated National Disaster Management Committee account at the Bank of Ghana before transferring the full GH¢350 million into the account.
Out of the allocation, GH¢200 million has been earmarked for emergency humanitarian assistance to flood victims, while the remaining GH¢150 million will fund flood mitigation projects aimed at reducing the impact of flooding in vulnerable communities across the country.
