AKOSOMBO DAM SPILLAGE: AGRIC MINISTER ANNOUNCES $40M CASH SUPPORT FOR FARMERS AFFECTED BY FLOOD

“We have all witnessed the devastation as a result of the necessary action the Volta River Authority (VRA) had to take to save the Akosombo Dam. As a result, several farmers have been affected. I have directed that due to the emergency, $40 million of the World Bank funded Food System Resilient Programme be restructured to restore farmers fully whose farms have been wiped out,” the Abetifi Member of Parliament said.

The flooding has impacted farming businesses, education, health, mobility, shelter, and access to food for the children in the affected communities.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the VRA, Mr Emmanuel Antwi-Darkwa said that the lake was experiencing inflows more than expected hence the spillage was going to continue.

“We are on phase II [of the spillage] right now and it is a cycle. It is normal at this time of the year for us to experience inflows. The difference is that we are getting more than expected and to safeguard this dam means that we have to spill water, that is the standard operation for any hydro dam but the inflows that we are seeing now are in excess.

“Definitely, as the cycle goes through this will recede so we are hoping it will recede in the next time,” he told journalists on Thursday, October 12.

“The spilling may continue even though we are anticipating that the levels may drop down to phase 1, which was started on September 15 but of course, we did not have much excess as we are seeing now, this is an emergency as we have seen from the beginning.

“Whether dredging or no dredging it is an emergency. The volume of water that is coming into the lake right now which we have to throw out, it means that we need to evacuate people from wherever they are to ensure they are safe until the inflows recede,” he added.