President John Dramani Mahama has attributed Monday’s severe flooding in Accra to a combination of unusually heavy rainfall, climate trends, weak drainage systems and human activities, following an aerial tour of affected areas in the capital on June 29.
Speaking after inspecting flood-hit communities, the President said the scale of flooding recorded in the city was among the worst in recent years, with rainfall levels far exceeding previous records.
He noted that about 140 millimetres of rain was recorded in Accra within a single day, compared to a maximum of 56 millimetres on a typical heavy-rain day last year, describing the volume as unusually high and overwhelming for existing drainage systems.
According to him, rainfall patterns provided by the Ghana Meteorological Agency show a steady increase in intensity over recent years, with June rainfall totals rising from 85 millimetres in 2024, to 172 millimetres in 2025, and 333 millimetres in 2026 over comparable periods.
He explained that the increasing frequency of rainy days has left drainage channels with little time to recover, worsening flooding in low-lying areas of the city.
Beyond the climate factors, President Mahama said Accra’s physical layout also contributes to the problem, noting that the city sits between the Akwapim mountain range and the Atlantic Ocean, with natural waterways that have been increasingly obstructed by urban development.
He said rapid population growth and unplanned construction have narrowed or blocked the natural paths through which stormwater flows into the sea, creating serious drainage bottlenecks.
The President also highlighted human behaviour as a major factor, citing indiscriminate dumping of waste into drains and the conversion of wetlands into illegal dumping sites and settlements.
He described reports of illegal waste disposal sites being created and later sold for construction as particularly worrying, saying such practices worsen flooding risks for entire communities.
President Mahama stressed that addressing the crisis requires both engineering solutions and strict enforcement of planning and environmental laws, including clearing obstructed waterways and removing buildings on drainage paths.
He noted, however, that enforcement often attracts criticism, as demolition of illegal structures is sometimes viewed as harsh, even though failure to act leads to wider suffering during floods.
He said the latest flooding underscored the need for collective responsibility, adding that the actions of a few individuals who block waterways ultimately affect the entire city.
