Project to make Volta Lake safer launched (back page)
A project to reduce accidents on the Volta Lake and also make travelling on the lake safer has been launched at Tapa Abotoase in the Biakoye District of the Volta Region.
Dubbed, “The Volta Lake Enhancement Project”, it is in response to a recent disaster on the lake which claimed the lives of more than 20 people.
The project, which is a collaboration among Zoil Services Limited, a subsidiary of Zoomlion, the Ministry of Transport (MoT) and the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), is aimed at reducing the loss of lives on the lake.
Under the project, 10,000 life jackets will be provided for boat operators and users, while 2,000 people will be recruited, trained and equipped with the capacity to monitor and ensure that lake users adopt safe practices in their operations.
The Naval patrol team on the lake will also be provided with speed boats, disaster response/rescue teams will be provided with communication gadgets and other disaster management logistics will be established at vantage points along the lake.
Launching the project, the Deputy Minister of Transport, Mrs Dzifa Aku Attivor, said GMA investigations indicated that major causes of accidents on the lake included overloading and drunkenness, lack of effective enforcement, licensing and sanction regimes for offenders, lack of satisfactory lake transport, incompetent boat operators, among other factors.
She noted that although the GMA and the Volta Lake Transport Company (VLTC) had endeavoured to intensify efforts at implementing a number of lake safety measures, which led to a drastic reduction in the rate of accidents on the lake, recent events on the lake indicated that a lot more needed to be done.
She indicated that as part of efforts to improve safety on the lake, the MoT, together with the GMA, had embarked on regular educational campaigns in the communities along the lake.
For instance, brochures in English and the local languages had been produced on inland water safety code, she said.
In addition, she said, the MoT was setting up a fund to support the project and urged all district assemblies along the lake and other stakeholders to contribute their quota.
Proceeds from the fund are expected to be used to support boat owners to acquire modern and safer boats, remove stumps from the lake and secure patrol boats for the Naval task force.
Mrs Attivor expressed the MoT’s appreciation for the kind gesture of Zoomlion in supporting the ministry’s determination to make life more meaningful for communities along the Volta Lake.
The Director of the GMA, Mr I.P. Azumah, advised the people to use the life jackets donated for the purpose, not to be used as decorative items in the rooms of the recipients.
He noted that the use of softwood for boat construction, coupled with the tree stumps in the lake, did not augur well for safety.
He, therefore, called for alternative materials such as fibre glass and aluminium for the construction of boats to enhance the nature of the boats on the lake.
Zoomlion donated 1,000 life jackets, 10 motorbikes and 10 bicycles to the MoT to support the project. It also donated GH¢5,000 and 40 bags of rice as relief items to the victims of the October 19, 2009 accident.
Present at the ceremony were members of the Volta Regional Caucus in Parliament, members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Transport, some district chief executives (DCEs) in the region and traditional rulers.
Dubbed, “The Volta Lake Enhancement Project”, it is in response to a recent disaster on the lake which claimed the lives of more than 20 people.
The project, which is a collaboration among Zoil Services Limited, a subsidiary of Zoomlion, the Ministry of Transport (MoT) and the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), is aimed at reducing the loss of lives on the lake.
Under the project, 10,000 life jackets will be provided for boat operators and users, while 2,000 people will be recruited, trained and equipped with the capacity to monitor and ensure that lake users adopt safe practices in their operations.
The Naval patrol team on the lake will also be provided with speed boats, disaster response/rescue teams will be provided with communication gadgets and other disaster management logistics will be established at vantage points along the lake.
Launching the project, the Deputy Minister of Transport, Mrs Dzifa Aku Attivor, said GMA investigations indicated that major causes of accidents on the lake included overloading and drunkenness, lack of effective enforcement, licensing and sanction regimes for offenders, lack of satisfactory lake transport, incompetent boat operators, among other factors.
She noted that although the GMA and the Volta Lake Transport Company (VLTC) had endeavoured to intensify efforts at implementing a number of lake safety measures, which led to a drastic reduction in the rate of accidents on the lake, recent events on the lake indicated that a lot more needed to be done.
She indicated that as part of efforts to improve safety on the lake, the MoT, together with the GMA, had embarked on regular educational campaigns in the communities along the lake.
For instance, brochures in English and the local languages had been produced on inland water safety code, she said.
In addition, she said, the MoT was setting up a fund to support the project and urged all district assemblies along the lake and other stakeholders to contribute their quota.
Proceeds from the fund are expected to be used to support boat owners to acquire modern and safer boats, remove stumps from the lake and secure patrol boats for the Naval task force.
Mrs Attivor expressed the MoT’s appreciation for the kind gesture of Zoomlion in supporting the ministry’s determination to make life more meaningful for communities along the Volta Lake.
The Director of the GMA, Mr I.P. Azumah, advised the people to use the life jackets donated for the purpose, not to be used as decorative items in the rooms of the recipients.
He noted that the use of softwood for boat construction, coupled with the tree stumps in the lake, did not augur well for safety.
He, therefore, called for alternative materials such as fibre glass and aluminium for the construction of boats to enhance the nature of the boats on the lake.
Zoomlion donated 1,000 life jackets, 10 motorbikes and 10 bicycles to the MoT to support the project. It also donated GH¢5,000 and 40 bags of rice as relief items to the victims of the October 19, 2009 accident.
Present at the ceremony were members of the Volta Regional Caucus in Parliament, members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Transport, some district chief executives (DCEs) in the region and traditional rulers.
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