Government is set to deploy 70 excavators seized from illegal mining operations to the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) to support a nationwide desilting exercise aimed at reducing flooding, Interior Minister Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak has announced.

The initiative forms part of broader efforts to address persistent flooding challenges in Accra and other parts of the country, where heavy rains continue to cause destruction and displacement.

According to the Interior Minister, the excavators were confiscated during anti-illegal mining operations and will now be repurposed for public infrastructure maintenance, particularly the clearing of choked drains.

He explained that the decision was taken to strengthen drainage improvement efforts and reduce the impact of seasonal flooding in urban centres.

“Currently, what we are doing is that all the seized excavators from the illegal mining activities… about 70 of them should be given to NADMO so that they can take them across the country to do desilting,” he said on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday, June 10.

Muntaka added that the formal handover will take place next week, stressing that maintaining clean surroundings remains key to long-term flood prevention.

The deployment of the excavators is expected to boost NADMO’s capacity to clear waterways and improve drainage systems, especially in flood-prone communities in Accra.

Authorities say poor drainage management, indiscriminate waste disposal, and construction on waterways continue to worsen flooding across the country.