The Ministry of Finance has credited the accounts of the National Disaster Management Committee with GH¢350 million from the Contingency Fund.
The amount is to finance emergency flood relief for affected persons in last Monday’s flood related disasters and also carry out mitigation measures following the severe flooding that affected parts of the country.
The transfer which was completed yesterday is contingent on President John Dramani Mahama's directive to the Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, to mobilise resources from the Contingency Fund to support immediate relief efforts and strengthen flood mitigation measures.
In line with Article 177 of the 1992 Constitution, the Finance Minister first secured parliamentary approval through the Finance Committee for the withdrawal from the Contingency Fund.
Following Parliament's approval, the Minister for Finance authorised the Controller and Accountant-General to release and transfer the GH¢350 million from the Contingency Fund to the National Disaster Management Committee to implement the National Emergency Flood Response Programme.
Pursuant to the minister's directive, the Controller and Accountant-General opened a dedicated National Disaster Management Committee Account at the Bank of Ghana and transferred the full GH¢350 million into it.
The designated account can, therefore, be drawn down towards the actions outlined to mitigate the impact of the floods on persons and households as well as carry out engineering and demolition exercises, among others, to ensure that the flooding of such magnitude does not recur.
Component
Of the amount, GH¢200 million will finance urgent relief efforts for flood victims and affected communities, while GH¢150 million will be used to undertake flood mitigation measures aimed at reducing the frequency and impact of flooding.
The transfer of the funds gives effect to President Mahama's directive for an immediate government response to the flood emergency, providing timely assistance to affected communities while supporting long-term measures to reduce the impact of future flooding.
Background
At least 12 individuals died, with 38,802 individuals in 7,761 households displaced by last Monday’s downpour, according to the Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak.
Briefing the legislature on the impact of flood situation in Accra and other parts of the country, he said seven more persons were missing, following the flood that impacted lives, property and economic activities in 18 metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) in Accra.
Meanwhile, Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMeT) has given notice for the country to expect more rains this month.
Last Monday’s rainfall of 169 millimetres of water in a day has been described as the fourth highest the country has ever seen since 1995.
For the month of June, the total rainfall is 593.2 millimetres of water, also the highest the country has ever received in its history in one month.
The last time this happened was in 2002 when rainwater averaged 420.6 millimetres in a month.
