The Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) Project has had its implementation period extended to 2027 following additional financing from the World Bank, the project’s coordinator has confirmed.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, GARID Project Coordinator Ohene Sarfoh said the extension follows Ghana’s successful bid for additional funding to expand the scope of the programme.

“We were going for additional financing, [and] the project period was extended to 2027,” he said.

He explained that the additional financing amounts to $150 million, approved in 2023, on top of the project’s original funding envelope.

Dr Sarfoh noted that the project’s total envelope stands at $285 million, although $65 million was earlier reallocated to support Ghana’s COVID-19 response, leaving a reduced core allocation for flood and drainage works before the additional funding was approved.

Expanded timeline and scope of works

The extension means the project will now run two years beyond its original 2025 completion date.

Dr Sarfoh said the longer timeline reflects the scale and technical complexity of ongoing works, including dredging of the Odaw River, widening of major drainage channels, and addressing infrastructure bottlenecks such as bridges that restrict water flow.

He added that the project has now received approval to proceed with previously delayed contracts and is advancing procurement processes for additional works.

Funding and disbursement status

World Bank records show that the additional financing agreement was signed on June 27, 2024 and has since become effective.

As of September 2024, total disbursement stood at US$127.1 million, representing 36.3 percent of total project financing and 63.6 percent of the original credit. The original credit is also reported to be 93.5 percent committed.

Flood context

The extension comes at a time when Accra continues to face recurrent flooding.

Heavy rains on June 28 and 29, 2026, submerged several parts of the capital, affecting major roads and low-lying communities. President John Dramani Mahama indicated that preliminary estimates showed rainfall levels of about 140 millimetres, with at least three deaths reported in Alajo following electrocution incidents linked to floodwaters.

The GARID Project remains Ghana’s flagship urban resilience programme, developed in response to the 2015 Accra floods and fire disaster, and designed to strengthen flood control, drainage systems, waste management and climate resilience across the Greater Accra Region.

With the extension now confirmed, attention is expected to remain on whether the expanded timeline will accelerate delivery of critical infrastructure needed to reduce the capital’s recurring flood risks.