The Centre for Settlement Studies of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has held a day’s stakeholder workshop to present their research findings on flood mitigation in the Kumasi metropolis. The research, funded by GIZ is in collaboration with the Network of Excellence in Land Governance in Africa (NELGA) to inform participants on various ways to mitigate flood disasters in their communities.
The purpose of the workshop was to enable researchers to share the findings of their current research on the demographic and socio-economic profile of persons living in flood-prone areas and their coping and adaptation practices. The workshop brought together Assemblymen, Unit Committee Members, Presiding Members and flood victims of selected high-risk flood-prone communities within the Greater Kumasi metropolis at the Asokwa Municipal Assembly.
In his keynote address, Provost of the College Art and Built Environment, Professor John Tia Bugri, said that KNUST in partnership with NELGA undertook this research to ensure that the phenomenon of flooding is mitigated. However, the primary cause of flooding has not changed, thus the need to reflect on why flooding has become rampant and a global threat. He urged the citizens to change their attitude towards the environment to safeguard lives and properties.
According to the Head of the Centre for Settlement Studies, Professor Divine K. Ahadzie, a recent study undertaken by the Centre indicates that the cost of flooding damage is about 8–10% of the total assets, indicating that if, for example, the Asokwa Municipality were to experience substantial flooding, the damage cost would equal 10% of all assets. This he said, can also lead to a 3% reduction in the performance of the economy. ‘Ghana has experienced about 7 to 10 major floods in the last twenty years, this means that every two years, Ghana experiences a major flood which leads to a performance loss in the economy. So, if flooding occurs frequently in the Asokwa municipality, the performance of the economy depreciates by 3%,” he added.
Professor Ahadzie also called on the government to pay special attention to housing and public policy as well as equip assemblymen to help their community. “We have not paid much attention to our housing need and citizens have built anyhow, which is contributing to the floods happening in the country. However, since the research two years ago we have still not seen that drive for community action led by the assemblyman.” He further advocated for investment in flood resilience construction to enable flood risk management.
The Asokwa Municipal Chief Executive, Honourable Akwanuasah Gyimah, revealed that Asokwa is a flood-prone area, which is why the Assembly allocates funds each year for dredging and desilting of gutters in order to prevent flooding. ‘These resources could have been channelled to other equally important developmental projects, so it is important for all stakeholders to pay attention to the research findings to help mitigate the effects and reduce the costs associated with flooding,’ he added.
The Findings
The study shows that over 90% of people living in flood-prone areas are primary/ JHS/SHS leavers who lack flood awareness. The researchers found that many of the victims have trade skills such as hairdressing, welding, gadget repairing and carpentry. Others are head porters, tabletop traders, and street sellers trying to make a living for themselves. The research also revealed that females with formal education below JHS level on flood lands are relatively higher (73.8%) than their male counterparts. Most victims (92%) alluded to the fact that they have experienced flood waters to waist level, suggesting very severe flood occurrences that can be very devastating and traumatic. Also, it came out the average number of children for the married cohort was three to four children. Thus, vulnerable families are mostly affected with over 80% of their jobs also being affected, when flooding occurs. Moreover, the national discourse often focuses on blaming them rather than seeing them as victims who need to be supported in terms of their recovery. Many of these vulnerable groups struggle to build small-scale businesses from scratch only for the floods to wipe out all their investments, now and then. Most of the victims turn to rely on family members and neighbours for support.
Overall, the study has revealed that, while the vulnerable and socially excluded are making great strides towards making a living for themselves, the annual flooding is derailing their efforts and making them worse off.
Recommendation
The researchers recommended that the response strategy should focus on providing a resettlement scheme in rebuilding the lives of these families and offering emotional support, especially for the women and children for the trauma they may be faced with annually anytime heavy floods occur.