Slum Dwellers Support Economy - Architect

By William Yaw Owusu

Thursday April 22, 2010
Steve Akuffo, a leading member of the Ghana Institute of Architects says city authorities should not see slums and its dwellers as nuisance but rather confront the issue as “a failed housing and urban development policies.”

“Those living in the various slums form integral part of the country’s economy. We must change the perceptions about them that they are nuisance. Slums represent the physical manifestations of failed housing and urban development policies,” he explained.

Mr. Akuffo was speaking at a colloquium themed, “Urban Housing and Slum Upgrading” organized by the institute to sensitize members on how to support the government to come up with an effective housing policy document to address the housing problems confronting the country.

Mr. Akuffo said, “We need to go back to the basics as we attempt to plan our cities and address the huge housing deficit. We have a chaotic situation on our hands because we have approached urban development and housing in a haphazard manner.”

“The demolition exercise embarked upon by city authorities will be an exercise in futility. Clearing slums and relocating the people will not solve the problem because the affected people are going to create a similar problem in their new place of abode".

"The country is witnessing an explosion in development but unfortunately the authorities have not been able to match these developments with the necessary infrastructure".

“More people live in urban centers than in the rural areas and we have to make the housing policies work. Once the country is growing there is no way we can fashion out a better housing and development policies. The actual implications of housing deficits is far reaching and we seem to have forgotten about the seriousness of the problem.”

He also criticized the way developers have invested heavily into projects without making provisions for parking spaces, saying that “this is why we are having chaotic situations on our hands.”

“Architects can do things that would encourage the people living in slums to embrace government initiatives for slums and other less developed areas,” he added.
He charged architects to come up with ideas and innovations that would help the authorities to regenerate the cities.

Another leading architect, Daniel Ntim-Addae, who spoke on the topic, “Real estate development in Ghana,” said the time has come for insurance companies to venture into real estate to boost interest in the sector.

He stated that the haphazard planning in the system was making real estate business very difficult for players in the sector.


Alsos see : www.dailyguideghana.com