Devastating floods and landslides have killed at least 24 people across Ghana and Ivory Coast after torrential rains swept through the two West African nations beginning on Saturday. Half of the deaths occurred in Ghana's capital, Accra, and the nearby city of Tema, where roads and residential neighbourhoods have been submerged. The twelve victims in Ghana included eight men, three women, and a child swept away by fast-moving floodwaters. In Abidjan, the commercial capital of Ivory Coast, at least twelve more people were killed, most buried under debris carried by rapidly flowing water.

In Accra, rescue crews have saved nearly 500 people from flooded homes, with operations still under way. Videos from the city show residents swimming through streets and helping neighbours escape inundated buildings. Large parts of both Accra and Tema have been rendered inaccessible, according to emergency services. Ghana's President John Mahama released emergency funds and deployed the military and police to support relief efforts, while the government acknowledged shortcomings in its initial response. Authorities caution that, although the rain has temporarily eased, saturated ground leaves the risk of further flooding very high. Mahama noted that Accra received 140 millimetres of rain in a single day — nearly three times the heaviest single-day rainfall recorded in the entire previous year.

Meteorological agencies in both countries warn that significantly more rain is expected throughout the week. The scale of the disaster reflects longer-standing vulnerabilities: both Ghana and Ivory Coast regularly experience serious flooding during the rainy season, with the damage worsened by inadequate drainage infrastructure, illegal construction, and urban planning that fails to account for heavy rainfall events.

Experts point to climate change as an amplifying factor, with extreme weather events — including intense rainfall and severe droughts — becoming increasingly frequent and severe. The World Meteorological Organization, the United Nations' weather agency, notes that Africa contributes very little to the global greenhouse gas emissions driving climate change, yet large parts of the continent remain acutely exposed to climate-related disasters. The floods underline the growing gap between who causes climate change and who bears its worst consequences.