Dr. Kwabena Donkor, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Pru East, has issued a stern warning that Ghana is likely to face a food shortage in 2024.
The warning is a result of the devastating flooding that has occurred in communities along the bank of the Volta Lake, which was caused by the lake’s bank being broken as a result of excess water inflow.
In an interview on Eyewitness News on Citi FM, Dr. Donkor expressed his grave concern, stating that the flooding is so severe that entire communities are now submerged under the lake.
He emphasized that health facilities, clinics, schools, and other essential infrastructure have all been flooded, which poses not only humanitarian but also medical, public health, and educational challenges. In his constituency, schools have had to shut down because they have been submerged.
“What exacerbates the situation is that in Pru, Oti, Bono East, Savannah, and Northern, farmlands have also been flooded, so there is a possibility of a serious food inadequacy and food insecurity going forward next year [2024] because farmlands have been flooded and the crops have not survived,” he stated.
Dr. Donkor revealed that the inundation of the communities along the lake began as far back as between June and July 2023 but had not been taken seriously because there had not been any coverage of the situation.
He further stated that victims of the flooding had so far only received communal assistance.
Nine communities in the Pru East District of the Bono East Region have been submerged after the Volta Lake broke its banks.
This has led to over 2,500 people being rendered homeless.
The most hit communities include Kobre Nsuano, Pentecost Nsuano, Adiembra, Fanteakura, Tokobikope, Tonka, Agokope, and Logakope, among others.
This was made known by the Pru East District Director of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Fredrick Ndila Ntana, in an interview with Citi News on Monday.
“So far we have about over nine communities which are affected by the floods. These are Fanteakura, Birikente, Tokobikope, Accra Town, Kobre Nsuano, Who Are You, and many others.”
“And so now we have about 2554 people displaced, and these are the breakdowns. The males are 1,302 and the females are 1,252…we have relocated them to the highest grounds,” he stated.
Meanwhile, over 30,000 people have been displaced following the spillage of the Akosombo dam in various communities in the Volta and Eastern regions.
The Volta River Authority (VRA) commenced controlled spillage from the Akosombo and Kpong Dams on September 15, 2023, due to a consistent rise in the inflow pattern and water level of the Akosombo reservoir.
Thousands of residents in South Tongu, North Tongu, Central Tongu, Asuogyaman, and several other areas have had homes submerged due to the spillage.