The member of parliament for Salaga South and Vice Chairperson of the Gender, Children and Social Welfare Committee, Hon. Hajia Zuwera Mohammed Ibrahimah, has described recurring floods as “preventable policy failures” and called on Parliament and the Executive to adopt urgent measures to protect children.
Making a statement on the floor of Parliament, Hon. Zuwera said the lack of adequate infrastructure to protect vulnerable people during floods is a violation of their human rights.
“This can be classified as a preventable recurring disaster. It is not simply a tragedy, it is a policy failure and this House has the power to correct that. The lack of adequate infrastructure to protect the vulnerable during these floods is a violation of their human rights,” she stated.
The Salaga South MP proposed a 6-point action plan focused specifically on protecting children:
1. Rapid Response Protocol Prioritising children under five and children with disabilities in evacuations.
2. Dedicated Child-Friendly Emergency Shelters: To be developed with NADMO and the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, separated from general shelters.
3. Trained Childcare Personnel: With mobile health units prepositioned each rainy season to combat waterborne diseases that disproportionately affect young children.
4. Ministry of Education Contingency Fund: To replace lost school materials and uniforms without delay.
5. Community Flood Alerts: Coordinated between the Ghana Meteorological Agency and NADMO, reaching caregivers and schools directly.
6. Annual Parliamentary Report: On preparedness for protecting children, to be submitted before each rainy season to enable oversight before disasters occur.
“Mr. Speaker, our children didn’t choose to live in flood-prone communities. Poverty and the absence of affordable, planned housing chose it for them,” she said.
Hon. Zuwera urged all relevant institutions – NADMO, the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Ghana Education Service, and the Ministry of Health – to “translate sympathy into standing protocols, so that the next rainy season doesn’t once again ask a Ghanaian parent to bury a child we had the power to save.”
