Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana

Seth Cudjoe; Samuel Kwabla Alorvor

doi:doi:10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12

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Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana

Seth Cudjoe, Samuel Kwabla Alorvor

Published in Hydrology (Volume 9, Issue 1)

Received: 30 October 2020 Accepted: 12 November 2020 Published: 26 March 2021

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Abstract

The role of indigenous knowledge in flood risk reduction and management has not received the attention it deserves in Ghana as little is known about how coastal communities use indigenous knowledge to deal with coastal flooding. The study sought to find out how indigenous knowledge is used as an adaptation response to coastal flooding in Totope, a coastal community in Ada East District of Ghana, which is affected by coastal flooding. A total of fifty-three (53) household heads and seven (7) key informants were purposively selected for questionnaire administration and focus group discussions. The study revealed that storm surges was the cause of coastal flooding in the study community. The study found that the people of Totope have rich indigenous knowledge which they use to deal with the coastal flooding. The people used sandbags to serve as barriers preventing flood water from getting into their compounds and rooms; they raised the foundations of their buildings; they reinforced their windows using trampoline to prevent floodwaters from entering their rooms; they created platforms in their rooms on which they pack their valuables when floodwaters breach the barriers created; they created pathways for floodwater to pass; and varied their livelihoods and the crops they produce as a response to flooding. The study further revealed that there was an increase in the intensity of storm surges in recent times in the community. The study concluded that a lasting solution to the coastal flooding menace in the community was the construction of a sea defense systems.

Published in	Hydrology (Volume 9, Issue 1)
DOI	10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12
Page(s)	13-20
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Coastal Flooding, Storm Surges, Indigenous Knowledge, Adaptation, Adaptive Capacity, Sea Level Rise (SLR)

References

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Seth Cudjoe, Samuel Kwabla Alorvor. (2021). Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana. Hydrology, 9(1), 13-20. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12

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Seth Cudjoe; Samuel Kwabla Alorvor. Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana. Hydrology. 2021, 9(1), 13-20. doi: 10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12

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AMA Style

Seth Cudjoe, Samuel Kwabla Alorvor. Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana. Hydrology. 2021;9(1):13-20. doi: 10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12

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@article{10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12,
  author = {Seth Cudjoe and Samuel Kwabla Alorvor},
  title = {Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana},
  journal = {Hydrology},
  volume = {9},
  number = {1},
  pages = {13-20},
  doi = {10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.hyd.20210901.12},
  abstract = {The role of indigenous knowledge in flood risk reduction and management has not received the attention it deserves in Ghana as little is known about how coastal communities use indigenous knowledge to deal with coastal flooding. The study sought to find out how indigenous knowledge is used as an adaptation response to coastal flooding in Totope, a coastal community in Ada East District of Ghana, which is affected by coastal flooding. A total of fifty-three (53) household heads and seven (7) key informants were purposively selected for questionnaire administration and focus group discussions. The study revealed that storm surges was the cause of coastal flooding in the study community. The study found that the people of Totope have rich indigenous knowledge which they use to deal with the coastal flooding. The people used sandbags to serve as barriers preventing flood water from getting into their compounds and rooms; they raised the foundations of their buildings; they reinforced their windows using trampoline to prevent floodwaters from entering their rooms; they created platforms in their rooms on which they pack their valuables when floodwaters breach the barriers created; they created pathways for floodwater to pass; and varied their livelihoods and the crops they produce as a response to flooding. The study further revealed that there was an increase in the intensity of storm surges in recent times in the community. The study concluded that a lasting solution to the coastal flooding menace in the community was the construction of a sea defense systems.},
 year = {2021}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana
AU  - Seth Cudjoe
AU  - Samuel Kwabla Alorvor
Y1  - 2021/03/26
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12
T2  - Hydrology
JF  - Hydrology
JO  - Hydrology
SP  - 13
EP  - 20
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7617
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12
AB  - The role of indigenous knowledge in flood risk reduction and management has not received the attention it deserves in Ghana as little is known about how coastal communities use indigenous knowledge to deal with coastal flooding. The study sought to find out how indigenous knowledge is used as an adaptation response to coastal flooding in Totope, a coastal community in Ada East District of Ghana, which is affected by coastal flooding. A total of fifty-three (53) household heads and seven (7) key informants were purposively selected for questionnaire administration and focus group discussions. The study revealed that storm surges was the cause of coastal flooding in the study community. The study found that the people of Totope have rich indigenous knowledge which they use to deal with the coastal flooding. The people used sandbags to serve as barriers preventing flood water from getting into their compounds and rooms; they raised the foundations of their buildings; they reinforced their windows using trampoline to prevent floodwaters from entering their rooms; they created platforms in their rooms on which they pack their valuables when floodwaters breach the barriers created; they created pathways for floodwater to pass; and varied their livelihoods and the crops they produce as a response to flooding. The study further revealed that there was an increase in the intensity of storm surges in recent times in the community. The study concluded that a lasting solution to the coastal flooding menace in the community was the construction of a sea defense systems.
VL  - 9
IS  - 1
ER  -

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Author Information

Seth Cudjoe

Department of Geography, Environment and Energy Studies, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
Samuel Kwabla Alorvor

Department of Development and Environmental Studies, Wisconsin International University College, Accra, Ghana

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Seth Cudjoe, Samuel Kwabla Alorvor. (2021). Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana. Hydrology, 9(1), 13-20. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12

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ACS Style

Seth Cudjoe; Samuel Kwabla Alorvor. Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana. Hydrology. 2021, 9(1), 13-20. doi: 10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12

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AMA Style

Seth Cudjoe, Samuel Kwabla Alorvor. Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana. Hydrology. 2021;9(1):13-20. doi: 10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12,
  author = {Seth Cudjoe and Samuel Kwabla Alorvor},
  title = {Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana},
  journal = {Hydrology},
  volume = {9},
  number = {1},
  pages = {13-20},
  doi = {10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.hyd.20210901.12},
  abstract = {The role of indigenous knowledge in flood risk reduction and management has not received the attention it deserves in Ghana as little is known about how coastal communities use indigenous knowledge to deal with coastal flooding. The study sought to find out how indigenous knowledge is used as an adaptation response to coastal flooding in Totope, a coastal community in Ada East District of Ghana, which is affected by coastal flooding. A total of fifty-three (53) household heads and seven (7) key informants were purposively selected for questionnaire administration and focus group discussions. The study revealed that storm surges was the cause of coastal flooding in the study community. The study found that the people of Totope have rich indigenous knowledge which they use to deal with the coastal flooding. The people used sandbags to serve as barriers preventing flood water from getting into their compounds and rooms; they raised the foundations of their buildings; they reinforced their windows using trampoline to prevent floodwaters from entering their rooms; they created platforms in their rooms on which they pack their valuables when floodwaters breach the barriers created; they created pathways for floodwater to pass; and varied their livelihoods and the crops they produce as a response to flooding. The study further revealed that there was an increase in the intensity of storm surges in recent times in the community. The study concluded that a lasting solution to the coastal flooding menace in the community was the construction of a sea defense systems.},
 year = {2021}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Indigenous Knowledge Practices and Community Adaptation to Coastal Flooding in Ada East District of Ghana
AU  - Seth Cudjoe
AU  - Samuel Kwabla Alorvor
Y1  - 2021/03/26
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12
T2  - Hydrology
JF  - Hydrology
JO  - Hydrology
SP  - 13
EP  - 20
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-7617
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.hyd.20210901.12
AB  - The role of indigenous knowledge in flood risk reduction and management has not received the attention it deserves in Ghana as little is known about how coastal communities use indigenous knowledge to deal with coastal flooding. The study sought to find out how indigenous knowledge is used as an adaptation response to coastal flooding in Totope, a coastal community in Ada East District of Ghana, which is affected by coastal flooding. A total of fifty-three (53) household heads and seven (7) key informants were purposively selected for questionnaire administration and focus group discussions. The study revealed that storm surges was the cause of coastal flooding in the study community. The study found that the people of Totope have rich indigenous knowledge which they use to deal with the coastal flooding. The people used sandbags to serve as barriers preventing flood water from getting into their compounds and rooms; they raised the foundations of their buildings; they reinforced their windows using trampoline to prevent floodwaters from entering their rooms; they created platforms in their rooms on which they pack their valuables when floodwaters breach the barriers created; they created pathways for floodwater to pass; and varied their livelihoods and the crops they produce as a response to flooding. The study further revealed that there was an increase in the intensity of storm surges in recent times in the community. The study concluded that a lasting solution to the coastal flooding menace in the community was the construction of a sea defense systems.
VL  - 9
IS  - 1
ER  -

Copy | Download