The International Association of World Peace Advocates (IAWPA) Ghana Chapter has called for urgent action to address the country’s recurring flooding, urging Ghanaians to change practices that contribute to the problem.
In an interview with The Chronicle, the Country Director of IAWPA Ghana, Ambassador Dr. Samuel Ben Owusu, said one of the major preventable causes of urban flooding is the excessive covering of residential and commercial compounds with concrete and tiles.
“The flood situation must stop and it starts in our compounds,” he said.
According to him, when property owners tile their entire compounds, rainwater is prevented from soaking into the ground.
“When we tile 100 percent of our compound, we block rainwater from going into the soil. The water has nowhere to go except our streets, homes and drains. We must reverse this trend now,” he stated.
To help address the situation, IAWPA Ghana has launched the Green Compounds Initiative under the theme, “Green Grass, Not Tiles.”
The initiative, according to him, recommends that Ghanaians adopt 40:60 standard, where every compound has at least 40 percent vegetation or other porous surfaces such as grass, gravel, gardens or tree pockets, while hard tiling or concrete covers no more than 60 percent.
Dr. Owusu said the initiative would help reduce surface runoff by allowing rainwater to soak into the ground, thereby reducing pressure on drains.
He added that it would also help lower urban heat, as grass and trees cool compounds and neighbourhoods, while reducing the risk of property damage and loss of life caused by surface water.
He called on Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), landlords, developers, architects and citizens to make the Green Compounds standard a voluntary national practice beginning this rainy season.
According to him, the Green Compounds Initiative is the first pillar of IAWPA Ghana’s five-point Citizen Resilience Framework for Flood Mitigation, which is aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 11 on Sustainable Cities and Communities and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
Dr. Owusu disclosed that IAWPA, which has Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), would begin sensitisation and pilot projects in flood-prone communities across the Greater Accra Region.
“We cannot wait for the government alone. Every compound owner is a flood prevention officer,” he said.
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