Disasters, Conflicts and Migration
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Natural Disasters |
Yes / No |
Comments / Details |
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Drought |
Yes |
Recurrent drought in the north severely affects agricultural activities. |
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Earthquakes |
Yes |
Between 1862 and 2023 various minor tremors shook Ghana. The effects of two tremors that occurred in 1997 were felt in all the region. |
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Epidemics |
Yes |
Cholera, Yellow Fever, Cerebro-Spinal Meningitis (CSM), Pandemic Influenza etc. |
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Extreme Temperatures |
Yes |
Average maximum temperatures are highest in March over the entire country except for an area between Akuse, Ho and Tafo where temperatures are highest in February. The highest temperature so far recorded in Ghana is 43.9°C at Navrongo. |
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Flooding |
Yes |
In 2023, more than 26,000 people have been displaced so far by floods in south-eastern Ghana, according to national authorities. Floods in the White Volta River Basin affected hundreds of thousands of people and destroyed many of their livelihoods. link |
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Insect Infestation |
Yes |
Armyworm, Anthrax, Blackfly, Locust, Larger Grain Borer etc. |
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Mudslides |
Yes |
Mud slides are a common risk in the wetter Western and Eastern regions of Ghana. |
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Volcanic Eruptions |
No |
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High Waves / Surges |
Yes |
The Volta Region of Ghana experience incidence of flooding of settlements and road networks by tidal waves. The country has a coastline of about 560 Km which makes it vulnerable to the impacts of climate changes, particularly sea level rise and coastal erosion. |
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Wildfires |
Yes |
Fire is a major hazard in Ghana. Incidences of widespread bushfires mostly affect the Northern and Brong Ahafo regions annually and are attributed to the burning of land in preparation for cultivation and the dry spell experienced because of the Harmattan season. |
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High Winds |
Yes |
Windstorms usually accompany the early rains in Ghana and are major causes of destruction of property and infrastructure. The dry, dusty, harmattan winds occur from January to March. |
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Other Comments |
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Man-Made Issues |
Yes / No |
Comments / Details |
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Civil Strife |
Yes |
Land conflicts were mostly inter-ethnic struggles over access to, control over and ownership of land. |
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International Conflict |
No |
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Internally Displaced Persons |
No |
In 2018, 5000 IDPs were registered in Ghana, according to World Bank |
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Refugees Present |
Yes |
At the end of June 2021, Ghana hosted 14,273 refugees and asylum-seekers. Source UNHCR |
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Landmines / UXO Present |
No |
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Other Comments |
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Calamities and Seasonal Affects
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Seasonal Effects on Transport |
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|---|---|---|
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Transport |
Comments |
From (month) to (month) |
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Primary Road Transport |
No |
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Secondary Road Transport |
Yes |
From April to July |
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Rail Transport |
No |
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Air Transport |
Yes, due to the Harmattan wind |
From December to March |
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Waterway Transport |
n/a |
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The major primary roads are paved and in good condition on the opposite of the secondary roads which are not paved and can be damaged during the rainy season. The harmattan wind affects greatly the air transport, with delays and cancellation of certain flights due to the low visibility.
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Seasonal Effects on Storage and Handling (economic, social, climate…) |
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|---|---|---|
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Activity |
Comments |
From <month> to <month> |
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Storage |
No |
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Handling |
No |
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Other |
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Capacity and Contacts for In-Country Emergency Response
Government
In response to the Yokohama strategy for a safer world and plan of action, the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) was established by act 517 of 1996 to manage disasters and similar emergencies in the country. It was structured and placed under the ministry of the interior, to enable coordinating all the relevant civil authorities at the national, regional and district levels.
NADMO functions under a National secretariat, ten (10) Regional secretariats, two hundred and forty-three (243) Metropolitan, Municipal and District secretariat and over nine hundred (900) Zonal offices throughout the country. The Technical Advisory Committees are the multi-sectorial and multi-discipline bodies that do the technical planning and advise NADMO on the mode of implementation of programmes and projects appropriate for the various hazard/ disaster types. They play very active roles in the pre-disaster, emergency and post-disaster phases either as technical advisors or field workers.
The Technical Committee members are drawn from the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), UN system, Professional Institutions/Academia and Individuals with the requisite skills, expertise and proven experience.
The Technical Committees at all meetings discuss topical issues affecting or likely to affect the people of Ghana during emergencies and in a relative peace time they are expected to assist NADMO in the implementation of programmes and projects. With the diverse expertise embedded in the committees, the members are occasionally used as resource persons for workshops, seminars, media education and outreach programmes.
There are eight National Technical Committees of experts from governmental, non- governmental and other institutions. The Nuclear and Radiological Committee was recently added because of its international specific concerns and focus.
For more information on government contact details, please see the following link: 4.1 Government Contact List.
Humanitarian Community
20 UN entities are active in Ghana: FAO, IFAD, ILO, IMO, IOM, UN Habitat, UNAIDS, UNCDF, UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNIC, UNICEF, UNIDO, UNODC, UNOPS, UNU-INRA, WFP, WHO.
International NGOs are also working in Ghana, see below a list (not exhaustive):
ADRA (Adventist Development Relief Agency) CARE, CRS (Catholic Relief Service) PLAN, Water Aid, World Vision.
The UN has four programme areas, which are fully aligned with the GSGDA and the MDGs:
1. Food Security and Nutrition
2. Sustainable Environment, Energy and Human Settlements
3. Human Development and Productive Capacity for Improved Social Services
4. Transparent and Accountable Governance
The UN is organized in 11 Outcome Groups that are linked to the national Sector Working Groups. Click here for more information.
Ghana hosts one of five United Nations Humanitarian Response Depots (UNHRD) in the world. The depot stores emergency supplies and equipment not just for WFP—which manages the depot—but also for other humanitarian organizations who have registered to use the facility. Since its establishment in Ghana in 2006, the depot has helped to reduce costs and improve emergency response time. Dispatches have been used to respond to several emergency operations in Africa, but also in the Americas and Europe. Since 2017, UNHRD covered a total of 63 Countries, dispatching 48,393 m3 of goods, equivalent to 11,014 mt, for 18 Partners Organizations. A Logistics Intervention Fleet has also been integrated into the activities of the HRD, with the objective of further improving the region’s response capacity and eliminating the need for capital investments each time an emergency occurs.
Figures:
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3600 m2 Covered space.
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1400 m2 Open storage.
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612 m3 Temperature-controlled space.
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26 m3 Cold Room.
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450 m2 Office space.
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400 m2 Training centre.
