Urban Resilience in Africa: A Study of Land-Use Stresses on the Urban Environment in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area, Ghana

Abstract

The Greater Accra Metropolitan Area of Ghana is experiencing rapid urbanisation at the expense of the environment, with substantial pollution compromising the area's resilience. This article examines the spatial dynamics of pollution from land use in the area and its health-related impacts. Drawing on a desk review of the literature and a transdisciplinary empirical approach, this study employed participatory mapping and qualitative methods of analysis to examine the extent to which the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area is building resilience in the face of increasing environmental pollution induced by land use. The researchers found spatial variations in the phenomenon, i.e. community-specific land-use pollution and general land-use pollution. Community-specific land-use pollution comes from dust and fumes, quarries and sand weaning, historical preservations, and transport corridors. General land-use pollution found across the study area related to dusty areas, noise from markets and churches, contamination of water bodies, solid and liquid waste, as well as excessive spillage of lubricants and carbon monoxide from car engines – all of which poses a threat to human health. Although both local and successive national governments have initiated different actions and platforms to mitigate pollution from land use and its health impacts, Ghana must work harder to build a framework of more sustainable and robust urban resilience.