In Ghana, at least 34 people have died in northern Ghana during flooding caused by heavy rains and waters spilling from a dam in neighbouring Burkina Faso. Relief agency officials said, Bagre Dam is located on the White Volta river that begins in Burkina Faso and which converges with the Black Volta downstream and feeds into Lake Volta in southern Ghana.

The authorities open the dam’s spillways during annual rains, but the excess volumes of water regularly flood communities along the rivers. People living along the White Volta have been urged to stay away from its banks. Others have been told to move to higher ground.

Seji Saji, deputy head of Ghana’s National Disaster Management Organisation, said the situation is under control and teams are working flat out to reach those affected. Aid agency Oxfam’s inequality programmes and campaign manager in Ghana, Zakaria Sulemana, said the situation required high-powered political attention.