By: Dr. Noriss K. Hammah
Every rainy season, residents of Accra brace themselves for a familiar and painful reality: flooded homes, destroyed businesses, traffic gridlock, disrupted livelihoods, and, tragically, the loss of human lives. Despite decades of desilting drains, dredging waterways, demolishing structures on watercourses, and investing in storm drains, flooding remains one of the capital city’s most persistent challenges.
The continued recurrence of floods suggests that Ghana’s approach to flood management requires a fundamental shift. Rather than relying primarily on demolition exercises and drainage expansion, Ghana should seriously consider adopting an integrated engineering solution similar to Malaysia’s internationally acclaimed SMART Tunnel—a project that transformed flood management in Kuala Lumpur while simultaneously addressing urban traffic congestion.
The Cost of Flooding in Accra
Flooding has become one of the most expensive and deadly urban problems confronting Ghana. Communities such as Alajo, Odawna, Kaneshie, Circle, Adabraka, Mallam, Weija, Dansoman, and parts of East Legon frequently experience severe flooding during heavy rains.
The June 3, 2015 disaster remains one of the darkest moments in Ghana’s history. Torrential rains caused extensive flooding around the Kwame Nkrumah Circle area, triggering an explosion at a fuel station that claimed more than 150 lives and left hundreds injured. The tragedy exposed the devastating consequences of inadequate urban flood management.
Nearly a decade later, many of the same communities remain highly vulnerable.
Successive governments have invested substantial resources in dredging drains, desilting channels, and demolishing structures obstructing waterways. While these measures are necessary, they have not delivered a lasting solution.
Why Demolitions Alone Cannot Solve Accra’s Flood Problem
Unauthorized construction on waterways undeniably contributes to flooding. Buildings erected within floodplains reduce natural water retention capacity and obstruct drainage paths.
However, attributing Accra’s flooding solely to structures on waterways oversimplifies a much larger challenge.
Several interconnected factors contribute to flooding in the capital:
- Rapid urbanization without corresponding infrastructure expansion.
- Inadequate stormwater management systems.
- Extensive concretization and paving of surfaces, reducing groundwater infiltration.
- Poor waste disposal practices that block drains.
- Encroachment on wetlands and natural retention areas.
- Climate change, resulting in increasingly intense rainfall events.
- Limited water retention and detention facilities.
Even if every unauthorized structure on waterways were removed today, Accra would still experience significant flooding because the city’s drainage infrastructure was not designed to handle current runoff volumes and rainfall intensities.
The challenge therefore extends beyond removing obstructions; it requires modern infrastructure capable of managing vast quantities of stormwater.
Kuala Lumpur’s Journey from Flood Crisis to Flood Resilience
Before the construction of the SMART Tunnel, Kuala Lumpur faced flooding challenges remarkably similar to those confronting Accra today.
Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, flash floods regularly affected the Malaysian capital. Major commercial districts and transportation corridors were repeatedly inundated, causing substantial economic losses and disrupting daily life.
Rapid urban growth had significantly increased impermeable surfaces, while the Klang and Ampang Rivers frequently overflowed during periods of heavy rainfall. Traditional drainage improvements alone proved inadequate to address the scale of the problem.
Recognizing the need for a more innovative and integrated solution, the Malaysian Government launched the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel Project, popularly known as the SMART Tunnel.
Completed in 2007, the SMART Tunnel became the world’s first dual-purpose tunnel designed to serve both flood mitigation and transportation functions.
What is the SMART Tunnel?
The SMART Tunnel stretches approximately 9.7 kilometres and performs two critical functions:
- A motorway tunnel that eases traffic congestion within Kuala Lumpur.
- A flood diversion tunnel that channels excess stormwater away from flood-prone urban areas.
Under normal conditions, motorists use the tunnel daily.
During moderate rainfall events, floodwater flows through dedicated lower channels while traffic continues uninterrupted.
During severe storms, the tunnel is temporarily closed to vehicles and converted entirely into a flood diversion channel capable of transporting massive volumes of water away from the city centre.
Since its commissioning, the SMART Tunnel has successfully prevented numerous major flood incidents and protected billions of dollars’ worth of economic activity.
Comparing Kuala Lumpur and Accra
Although Kuala Lumpur and Accra differ geographically and economically, they share several important characteristics.
Similarities
Rapid Urban Growth
Both cities have experienced significant population growth and urban expansion that have outpaced infrastructure development.
Heavy Seasonal Rainfall
Both cities experience intense rainfall events capable of overwhelming drainage systems.
Loss of Natural Water Retention Areas
Urban development has reduced wetlands, floodplains, and other natural flood-control systems.
National Economic Importance
Each city serves as the principal commercial and administrative centre of its country.
Differences
Infrastructure Investment
Malaysia has consistently invested in long-term urban flood management infrastructure over several decades.
Drainage Technology
Kuala Lumpur’s drainage systems are more technologically advanced and integrated.
Planning Enforcement
Malaysia has generally achieved stronger enforcement of urban planning regulations and flood-risk zoning.
Despite these differences, the underlying challenge remains the same: managing large volumes of stormwater within densely populated urban environments.
Why Ghana Should Consider a SMART Tunnel
Accra’s topography naturally channels stormwater toward low-lying areas before discharge into the Gulf of Guinea. During heavy rainfall, enormous volumes of runoff move through the Odaw River Basin and surrounding catchment areas.
A Ghanaian SMART Tunnel could deliver several benefits:
Divert Excess Floodwater
Large underground diversion tunnels could capture stormwater upstream and safely convey it toward designated discharge points.
Reduce Flooding in Vulnerable Communities
Areas such as Circle, Alajo, Kaneshie, Odawna, and Adabraka could experience substantial reductions in flood risk.
Improve Urban Mobility
Like its Malaysian counterpart, the tunnel could double as a transport corridor, reducing chronic congestion within Accra.
Protect Economic Activity
Reduced flood damage would lower economic losses, improve business continuity, and strengthen investor confidence.
Build Climate Resilience
As climate change intensifies rainfall patterns across West Africa, Ghana requires infrastructure designed to withstand future conditions rather than past weather patterns.
Recommendations for Ghana
- Commission a Comprehensive Feasibility Study
Government should undertake a detailed engineering, environmental, and economic assessment of the feasibility of a SMART Tunnel system for Accra.
- Develop an Integrated Flood Management Master Plan
Flood mitigation should combine:
- Modern drainage expansion.
- Retention and detention basins.
- Wetland restoration.
- River channel improvements.
- Underground flood diversion infrastructure.
- Strengthen Urban Planning Enforcement
Preventing future encroachment on waterways must remain a national priority.
- Restore and Protect Wetlands
Wetlands serve as natural flood-control systems and should be preserved and expanded.
- Improve Waste Management
Blocked drains continue to exacerbate flooding and require sustained enforcement and public education.
- Pursue Public-Private Partnerships
Large-scale infrastructure projects can be financed through innovative partnerships involving government, development finance institutions, pension funds, and private investors.
- Establish a National Flood Infrastructure Fund
A dedicated funding mechanism would ensure continuity of financing beyond political cycles.
Conclusion
The annual flooding experienced in Accra demonstrates that conventional approaches alone are no longer sufficient. Demolishing structures on waterways is important, but it addresses only one aspect of a complex urban challenge.
Malaysia faced a similar predicament and responded with innovation, engineering excellence, and long-term strategic planning. The SMART Tunnel transformed Kuala Lumpur’s flood resilience and has become a globally recognized model for integrated urban infrastructure.
Ghana now has an opportunity to think boldly. Rather than continually reacting to floods after they occur, the country should invest in transformative solutions capable of protecting lives, safeguarding property, stimulating economic growth, and preparing Accra for the realities of a changing climate.
The question is no longer whether Accra needs a new approach to flooding.
The question is whether Ghana is prepared to embrace the scale of innovation required to secure its future.
