Policy analyst and engineer Michael Kosi Dedey has warned that Ghana’s recurring flooding problems will persist unless the country moves beyond temporary clean-up exercises and focuses on long-term solutions in urban planning and waste management.
He argued that while national sanitation exercises are useful in raising awareness and clearing waste, they cannot address the deeper structural challenges contributing to flooding across many communities.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Breakfast Daily during discussions on the two-day national clean-up exercise, Mr Dedey said Ghana’s approach has largely been reactive, with authorities often responding to disasters instead of investing in preventive measures.
He stressed that the country must prioritise proper city planning, efficient waste management systems and stronger local government structures to deal with the sanitation crisis.
According to him, repeated clean-up campaigns risk becoming a temporary solution if the systems responsible for preventing waste accumulation and flooding remain weak.
“We need to do the real hard work of planning and developing our cities rather than this knee-jerk reaction of, ‘Let’s go and clean up, let’s go and do this.’ It doesn’t help,” he said.
Mr Dedey called for Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to be given greater responsibility and capacity to manage waste within their jurisdictions.
He questioned Ghana’s reliance on private waste management arrangements, arguing that local authorities must have stronger oversight and control over sanitation systems.
“We need to ensure that the state is working properly and waste is managed by districts or by assemblies,” he stated.
The policy analyst also raised concerns about sanitation contracts, insisting that authorities must demand accountability from companies and institutions paid to maintain public spaces.
He questioned why citizens are often mobilised for clean-up exercises when resources have already been allocated for sanitation services.
“We need to ensure that we don’t pay people and then come around again and say, ‘Let’s go and mobilise people to clean up’ for things that people are already being paid for,” he said.
Mr Dedey further blamed challenges in urban management on the fragmentation of district assemblies, arguing that the creation of too many smaller administrative units has affected coordinated development planning.
He urged government to reconsider aspects of the decentralisation system and consider consolidating some districts to improve efficiency and accountability.
“I sincerely think that we should go back and bring together some of the districts that we have fragmented seriously, to ensure that every district can quickly manage and do the work,” he said.
He cautioned policymakers against pursuing quick fixes, including waste-to-energy initiatives, without first addressing fundamental weaknesses in urban planning and waste disposal systems.
According to him, Ghana must first examine the failures within its planning and management structures before adopting expensive interventions.
“Let’s sit down as a country and ask the important question: What is fundamentally wrong with our planning and management system?” he said.
Mr Dedey maintained that sustainable flood prevention requires a comprehensive strategy built around effective city planning, empowered local authorities and reliable waste management systems rather than periodic emergency responses.
