The possibility of an earthquake catastrophe in Ghana cannot be ruled out as there have been numerous tremors over the past few years, leaving many people in a state of fear and panic, Director-General of National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) Eric Nana Agyeman-Prempeh has said.
According to him, records from Ghana Geological Survey indicate a series of approximately eleven (11) earth tremors on December 12, 2022, spanning nearly two and a half hours.
He therefore emphasised the need for Ghana to invest in innovative technologies that are robust enough to mitigate the unforeseen circumstances.
Mr. Agyeman-Prempeh added that international cooperations are to reducing and mitigating disaster risk, saying: “The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (20152030), an international document adopted by United Nations member-states, calls for the need for international collaborations, such as the one we are mutually pursuing in disaster risk management”.
The Sendia Framework prioritises the need to invest in disaster risk reduction and the importance of establishing strong private sector collaboration, he further stated.
He spoke at an executive breakfast forum organised by the Israel Economic and Trade Mission in Ghana and the Israel Export Institute in collaboration with NADMO in Accra.
The forum, which aimed at discussing Ghana’s disaster risk reduction strategy, also saw the introduction of Israeli innovative solutions and technologies in emergency preparedness and crisis management that can be adopted to improve Ghana’s capacity to deal with emergencies and manage crisis.
In her opening remarks at the forum, Israeli Ambassador to Ghana Shlomit Sufa said the risks of terrorism, extreme natural disasters and the intensification of global pandemics call for key disaster risk management approaches, such as preparation, forecasting and timely response, to save lives as well as prevent long-term collateral economic implications.
“We are all aware of the many tragic disasters that have happened and affected many lives in recent times. Turkiye is still fresh on our minds, and just a few days ago, Malawi’s Storm Freddy has also claimed many lives,” she said, adding that: “Since I have been in Ghana, I have witnessed a couple of preventable disasters, such as the Appiatse mining chemical explosion last year and the annual floods which cause a lot of havoc in the city of Accra.
Ms. Sufa said the situation presents Ghana with an urgent need to have a national conversation on emergency preparedness and crisis management, while learning from best practices in solving issues facing its disaster managers.
Although every nation is unique, she said many of the lessons that Israel has learned may be broadly applicable to preparation for mass-casualty incidents in Ghana.
