A Critical Review of the Disaster Management System in Ghana

Abstract

The study addresses the Ghana National Disaster Management organisation (NADMO) challenges and assesses the duties and performance in mapping up strategies to control hazards across length and breadth of the country. NADMO is a disaster management organisation established by ACT 517 of 1996   to coordinate national (both governmental and non-governmental) effort at reducing risk associated with hazards such as flooding, earthquakes, bushfires and evacuation of Ghanaians from foreign countries that can have negative impact on a population which is over 20million people. A systematic review of peer-reviewed papers on disaster management in Ghana was conducted. Disasters annually ravage numerous parts of the country. Disasters is the most severe and prevalent adverse event and has serious implications for sustainable development. This research analyzes the causes of flooding and its impact on the general population in Ghana. The study also finds that the underlying drivers of disasters are flooding and evacuation of Ghanaians from foreign lands. How effective NADMO has been in creating awareness for disaster preparedness among vulnerable communities across the country was also evaluated. Before the establishment of NADMO in 1996, both humans made and the Natural Disaster Relief Committee (NDRC) managed natural disasters. The operations of NDRC were basically ad-hoc measures to disaster management. Therefore, the study recommends that the disaster management agency must be strengthened through capacity building and sufficient budgetary provisions to ensure effective and efficient coordination to reduce disaster risk