Ensuring timely completion of resettlement housing units
That the government has already secured sites for the construction of housing units for victims of the September 2023 flood disaster in the Volta Region caused by the spillage of the Akosombo and Kpong dams is welcome news.
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It is already over six months since the disaster that impacted over 40,000 residents in the region struck, and the suffering and inconvenience of homelessness that the people have had to endure cannot be downplayed.
Be that as it may the Daily Graphic congratulates all well-meaning Ghanaians who have since the unfortunate happening reached out to our brothers and sisters who were affected.
While the people have lost property and belongings running into millions of cedis, we are happy to note that there have been no reports of lives lost in the floods, which means there is opportunity for the victims to rebuild their lives.
It is the reason the announcement by the government that it has started the processes to construct housing units for those who lost their places of abode before the end of the year is heartening.
According to the Minister of Works and Housing, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, for now, the ministry and other stakeholder agencies are working to validate the preliminary data on the victims to ensure equitable distribution of the housing units among beneficiaries.
We urge all stakeholders to collaborate effectively so that the government’s projection is made good.
The Daily Graphic also encourages all victims of the floods to be truthful in the information furnished the government, in order to be assisted to put their lives back on track.
As Mr Oppong Nkrumah said, some of the victims would not require new housing units, but assistance with the refurbishment of their homes as their belongings were destroyed in the floods.
In all, the government says there are nine resettlement sites in the Volta Region and the Ministry of Works and Housing is committed to carrying out decent work equitably at all the project sites. That is reassuring.
However, we enjoin both the government and the contractors who would be awarded the projects to use readily available and yet durable materials for the construction, so we do not have to grapple with overly expensive materials and an inflated budget.
That will also ensure that the construction is completed on or before schedule to bring relief to the victims of the floods.
Now that the sod has been cut at resettlement sites such as New Bakpa in the Central Tongu District and Mepe in the North Tongu District, we hope that the activity was not just for the cameras, but work will actually begin in earnest at those sites and the other seven.
It is very thoughtful of the government to consider other interventions needed in the affected communities, such as schools and markets, but we believe that priority should be given to the housing units if the government is not able to put up the social amenities simultaneously.
While we commend the Volta Regional Coordinating Council, the chiefs and the assemblies for collaborating to readily secure vast lands for the resettlement projects, we pray the government and all stakeholders to fast-track the assessment of preliminary data on those affected by the floods so that work is not unduly delayed.
Also, we call for transparency in the projects to resettle the flood victims as they begin. Nothing should be shrouded in mystery, especially the cost involved and allocation of the units when they are completed.
We understand that the cost involved is huge, that is why we have suggested the use of durable and quality materials to build the housing units.
Also, we encourage suppliers of the materials to offer realistic and affordable prices so the total unit cost will not go through the roof.
Ultimately, we urge that the projects are started with everything in place, including proper layout plans, funds and materials, to ensure they are not stalled but completed in good time to ease the inconvenience on victims of the floods.