The Minister for Works and Housing, Mr Francis Asenso-Boakye has sworn-in the governing board of the Ghana Hydrological Authority (GHA) with a mandate to develop a drainage masterplan for the management of flood control in the country.

At a brief swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday, the Minister urged the board to explore alternative sources of funding to enhance flood resilience and position the new Authority as the central point for drainage management, consultancy, and supervision across the country.

Mr Asenso-Boakye also implored the Board members to effectively collaborate with other allied institutions, including the Ministries of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development, Sanitation and Water Resources, Roads and Highways, among others, to help curb incidents of flooding in the country.

The swearing-in follows the successful passage of the Ghana Hydrological Authority Act, 2022 (Act 1085), which saw the conversion of the Hydrological Services Department of the Ministry into an autonomous body.

The Authority has the mandate to regulate the delivery of hydrological services for planning, design, execution, operation and maintenance of flood control mechanisms, works related to coastal engineering, sewerage, drainage improvement and river development, operational and applied hydrology to provide for related matters.