Following weeks of hardship caused by devastating floods between May and June, over 300 residents in the Lawoshime Electoral Area of the Keta Municipality have received emergency relief items from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO). But even as affected families welcome the aid, calls for sustainable development and infrastructural support are growing louder.
The relief items — which included bags of rice, boxes of cooking oil, mosquito nets, and other essentials — were distributed to residents of Lawoshime, Agorvinu, Hagodzi, Mamime, Songbe, and surrounding communities.
Mr. Wonder Setsoafia Deynu, NADMO Director for Keta, explained to the Ghana News Agency that the donation was part of efforts to restore hope to victims who lost their homes, livelihoods, and property to the floods.
“Emergency relief is just one part of the solution,” he stated. “Going forward, we need a coordinated approach involving government and stakeholders to find sustainable solutions to prevent future disasters.”
He credited the swift response to the support of Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) Mr. Wisdom Seade and Municipal Coordinating Director (MCD) Mr. Innocent Komla Gawuah, who, according to him, played key roles in mobilizing the relief effort.
While the immediate assistance has brought some comfort, residents and local leaders are now pressing for broader development interventions to address long-standing infrastructural deficits.
Mr. Israel Mensah, Assembly Member for the area, who received the donation on behalf of the affected communities, thanked NADMO and the Assembly for their timely gesture but underscored the need for more lasting solutions.
“Our people need more than relief,” he stressed. “We need good roads, access to clean water, electricity, healthcare, and better drainage infrastructure to prevent this kind of suffering in the future.”
The residents also extended gratitude to Member of Parliament Mr. Kwame Dzudzorli Gakpey, the MCE, and other individuals who helped secure the relief items. However, many noted that continued government attention was crucial in turning recovery into resilience.
The recent floods have once again exposed the fragility of rural communities in the face of climate-related disasters, sparking renewed debate on the need for integrated disaster preparedness and rural development policies across the Volta Region.
For now, the residents of Lawoshime and surrounding areas are relying on the hope that the government’s gesture of relief will soon be followed by tangible investments in infrastructure and social amenities to build back better.
