President John Dramani Mahama’s decision to advance the second phase of the Blekusu Sea Defence Project has drawn praise from coastal communities in Ghana’s Volta Region, where years of ocean erosion have wiped out homes, farmland, and critical infrastructure.
In an open letter ahead of the project’s official launch, Joel Degue, on behalf of residents in Agavedzi, Salakope, Amutsinu, Adina and neighboring areas, thanked the president for what he described as a long-overdue response to a deepening humanitarian and environmental crisis. The Blekusu Phase 2 contract has been awarded to Amandi Construction Ltd.
“Your decision to move forward with this project is not just a policy action; it is a response to the cries of countless families,” Degue wrote, describing the president’s intervention as a historic moment for the southern Volta coastline.
The region has suffered decades of tidal erosion, with entire communities displaced inland by heavy tidal waves. Previous interventions, including the Keta Sea Defence and Blekusu Phase 1, provided limited relief, but failed to restore lost land or prevent future damage, residents say.
While welcoming the current government’s renewed commitment, Degue urged the Mahama administration to expand the scope of Phase 2 beyond conventional engineering methods such as groynes and revetments. He called for a more integrated approach aligned with international best practices, including beach nourishment, sand dune construction, and nature-based solutions like mangrove and wetland restoration.
“These methods are already being deployed in countries like the Netherlands, the United States, and even in neighboring West African states,” the letter stated.
Degue also stressed on the need to incorporate social and economic support into the project’s design. He appealed for funding and policy support for alternative livelihoods, youth training, and resettlement efforts to ensure long-term resilience.
“The affected people must not only survive, but be given the means to rebuild and thrive,” he wrote.
President Mahama is expected to officially break ground on the Blekusu Phase 2 project during a visit to the region on Sunday. The project comes as Ghana faces growing threats from climate change, including rising sea levels and more frequent coastal flooding. According to local authorities, more than 4,000 people in the Ketu South municipality have been displaced by erosion in the last five years.
Mahama’s administration has positioned climate adaptation as a priority, pledging to scale up investment in coastal and flood defense systems. The Blekusu expansion is part of a broader national strategy to protect vulnerable communities and critical infrastructure across Ghana’s nearly 550-kilometer coastline.
“This project must be more than a sea wall,” Degue wrote. “It must be a turning point, a model for how we defend land, restore what we’ve lost, and rebuild the lives that have been swept away.”
