Traders at Sodom and Gomorrah to be relocated to Adjen Kotoku in March

The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) will, from March this year, move all commercial activities at Sodom and Gomorrah, a slum community in Accra, to Adjen Kotoku in the Ga West Municipal.

Residents in the area would also be moved 100 metres away from the Korle Lagoon to pave the way for the construction of a hedge around it.

Mr Alfred Oko Vanderpuye, the Metropolitan Chief Executive of the AMA, said the measures were geared towards addressing sanitation and flooding issues in Accra.

Mr Vanderpuye made these known when a 20-member Parliamentary Select Committee on Environment, Science and Technology paid a visit to the assembly last Friday.

The visit was to enable members of the committee to find out challenges that hindered the operations of the AMA and to also discuss ways of addressing flooding in the metropolis.

Led by its Chairman, Mr Edem Asimah, the committee visited some of the flood-prone areas in Accra, including the Korle Lagoon, Graphic Road and Sakaman.

Flooding in the metropolis

Mr Vanderpuye said for the past four years, the AMA had attempted to address the problem of flooding and sanitation in Accra, adding that the assembly had not been successful because of the lack of modern equipment and finance.

“Since the metropolis had no dumpsite, most of the waste generated was thrown into drains. These solid wastes blocked the free flow of water and allowed flooding to take place during downpours,” he said.

Mr Vanderpuye said Parliament had approved a $595-million flood protection project, supported by the World Bank.

The project, he said, included desilting, dredging and removal of waste from the Odaw drains and the Korle Lagoon, adding that the project was expected to bring significant change and make Accra one of the finest cities in Africa.

“All that is left is for the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MoFEP) and the partners involved to release the funds for the project to commence,” he added.

Chairman of select committee

Mr Asimah commended the leadership of the AMA for the measures put in place to address the perennial flooding in Accra and urged all the partners involved to join forces with the assembly to address the situation.

He said although it was the primary objective of the AMA to address sanitation and flooding issues in the metropolis, without an attitudinal change by the public, the issue of flooding would continue.

“Ghanaians should learn how to manage waste and not to keep throwing solid waste into drainage systems,” he added.

He said the committee would provide the needed assistance to the AMA and equip it with the needed logistics to address the issue of flooding in the metropolis.

Mr Asimah also called on the MOFEP and its partners to ensure the release of the fund for the  commencement of the project, adding that “this is the only way to permanently address sanitation and flooding problems in Accra”.