Farmers and residents affected by flooding in Mahaicony, Region Five, have received direct support from President Dr. Irfaan Ali following his visited to the affected areas.

The President noted that although flooding remains a challenge, investments made since the 2021 floods have helped reduce the impact on both residents and farmlands. He also highlighted that major infrastructure projects, including the Hope like canal project are designed to provide long-term protection against future flooding.

“I spoke to the technical team, that when that Hope Like Canal is completed, that we will have the same scenario as we are having on the East Coast, where the excessive storage and dumping of water when we have these high levels will be accommodated through the Hope Canal,” the president said.

NDIA Chairman, Lionel Wordsworth also briefed farmers on the interventions already in place and those currently underway.

“Over the past days, we have deployed five pieces of equipment, excavators, additional excavators, that’s correct, to assist farmers in raising their dams, open runaways, assisting in putting down pumps. And to date, we have also engaged 18 such farmers to utilize even their own tractor pump to help remove floodwaters,” he said.

Additional interventions include relocating a pump from Garden Table to the mouth of Mahaicony Creek and the deployment of a new pump to New Providence Additional equipment has been dispatched to the Jagdeo Canal area, which has reportedly affected approximately 15,000 acres of agricultural land.