The Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715) of the Republic of Ghana: The Law, Omissions and Recommendations

The passage of the Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715) has been considered a noteworthy milestone in Ghana’s human rights discourse because it gives the hope that it will improve the life of persons with disability (PWDs) to enable them be part of mainstream society. Though the Act covers key thematic provisions such as rights, accessibility, employment and education for PWDs amongst others, it has been criticized on the grounds that it has no provision on non-discrimination, the gender dimension of discrimination, rights of children with disability and legal definition of disability. Using secondary data such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability (UNCRPD) as well as disability legislations and policies of other countries in Africa, this paper argues that there are still glaring omissions in Act 715, some of which comprises housing for PWDs, voting rights of PWDs and liability of construction professionals. This paper proposes a stakeholder discussion of these omissions and the recommendations provided by critics and the outcome thereof should be considered in the event that policy actors decide to amend the Act. This is not to conclude that addressing these omissions will put an end to the scores of challenges confronting PWDs in Ghana but rather to ensure that Act 715 becomes robust and responsive to the needs and concerns of PWDs. Keywords: persons with disability, housing, voting rights, construction professionals, Act 71

Physical Access for Persons with Disability in Rented Houses in Kumasi, Ghana: Evidence from Compound Houses in Selected Neighbourhoods in the Metropolis

A compound house is a single or multi-storey structure with suites of single-banked rooms (single room or chamber and hall units[1]) that can be accessed from an unroofed square, circular or rectangular courtyard or sometimes without a courtyard. This study examines the level of accessibility of compound houses in Kumasi as well as the reasons for landlords’ inability to comply with the accessibility provisions of Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715) of Ghana. Stratified and convenience sampling techniques were adopted in selecting the landlords and compound houses in the study neighbourhoods. A total of 225 compound houses were selected for the study.  Using interviews as a means of collecting data from the sampled landlords, our conclusion suggests that more than 90 per cent of compound houses are not accessible to persons with disability, particularly those with mobility impairments. Lack of awareness of the law and financial constraint are the main reasons for landlords’ inability to comply with Act 715. It is recommended, amongst others, that accessibility guideline that specifies the level of access for PWDs be enacted. Keywords: persons with disability; compound house; accessibility; rental housing [1]A kind of unit in compound houses with two rooms, one serving as a bedroom and the other a hal

The urban dimension of Chinese infrastructure finance in Africa

For many years, Chinese infrastructure finance has been secured by African governments to provide infrastructure of national significance, while cities continue to lack fiscal tools for the provision of large-scale urban infrastructure. This article not only demonstrates that Chinese infrastructure finance is being extended to municipal authorities in Africa to undertake critical urban infrastructure but also scrutinizes the urban dynamics and local impact of using Chinese infrastructure finance for urban regeneration. Through empirical scrutiny of the regeneration of Kotokuraba Market in Cape Coast, Ghana, findings reveal that municipal authorities, like national governments, are subjected to political and embedded conditionalities. However, the conventional resource-backed repayment conditionality characteristic of Chinese-funded national projects differs from the project finance model—relying on the project’s cash flow for repayment—adopted in Cape Coast. We found in Cape Coast a locally-driven emphasis on affordable rents that stands in stark contrast to the practice of project finance, resulting in potential default of the Chinese loan. The wider consequences of this disjuncture for urban development, financing and governance in Cape Coast, Ghana, and Africa are discussed.Peer Reviewe

Seeing through African protest logics: a longitudinal review of continuity and change in protests in Ghana

Protests in Africa have a long history. Yet, for many years, western misconceptions in protest studies have hindered our understanding of the particularities and commonalities of African protests. In this study, we scrutinize the historical continuity and discontinuity of protests in Africa, using Ghana as a case. We situate a longitudinal analysis of protests in Ghana within the theoretical model of protest logics, using the institutional-analytical method. The study finds historical continuity largely in terms of proletarian (high cost of living, dispossession and inadequate infrastructure), republican (participatory governance and corruption) and corporatist (working conditions and unemployment) mobilisation themes in Ghana. These themes are underpinned by the processes of class struggle, accumulation by (urban) dispossession, neoliberalism, splintered urbanism, gentrification and corruption. The implication of this study is that contemporary protests in Africa would be influenced by issues such as high cost of living, participatory governance, erratic power supply, unemployment, poor road infrastructure and corruption. These issues should be prioritized in the agenda of African governments in order to avert spontaneous protests.L’Afrique a une longue histoire de protestations. Pourtant les idées fausses émanant des études sur ces mouvements ont entravé notre compréhension des particularités et des similitudes desmanifestations en Afrique. Dans cette étude, nous examinons la continuité et la discontinuité des mouvements de protestation en Afrique, en nous appuyant sur le cas du Ghana. Nous situons une analyse longitudinale des protestations au Ghana dans le modèle théorique de la logique de protestation, en utilisant la méthode institutionnelle-analytique. L’étude révèle une continuité historique se déclinant largement en thèmes de mobilisation prolétarienne (coût élevé de la vie, dépossession et infrastructures inadéquates), républicaine (gouvernance participative et corruption) et corporatiste (conditions de travail et chômage) au Ghana. Ces thèmes sont étayés par des processus de lutte des classes, d’accumulation par la dépossession (urbaine), de néolibéralisme, d’éparpillement urbain, de gentrification et de corruption. Cette étude implique que les protestations contemporaines en Afrique sont influencées par des questions comme celles du coût élevé de la vie, de la gouvernance participative, de la fourniture irrégulière d’électricité, du chômage, des infrastructures routièresmédiocres et de la corruption. Ces questions devraient être prioritaires dans les programmes gouvernementaux africains pour éviter que ne se produisent des protestations spontanées.Peer Reviewe

Urban governance in Ghana: the participation of traders in the redevelopment of Kotokuraba Market in Cape Coast

This article contributes to the discourse of participatory urban governance through a qualitative analysis of the redevelopment of a market infrastructure in Cape Coast, Ghana. It demonstrates that problems arise with the quantity, distance and size of trading spaces when traders are not made to participate at the construction phase of market redevelopment. The responses of the municipal authorities and the market traders in Cape Coast to these problems are discussed. The wider implication of the findings of this study is that citizens should be engaged from the conception through planning to the implementation of urban regeneration.Peer Reviewe

The Politics and Activism of Urban Governance in Ghana: Analyzing the Processes of Market Redevelopment in Kumasi and Cape Coast

Stadterneuerung in Ghana ist seit Jahren auch durch den Widerstand von Bürgerinnen und Bürgern geprägt. Auf der Grundlage einer qualitativen Analyse und Fallstudie zur Sanierung von Marktinfrastrukturen in Kumasi und Cape Coast zeigt diese kumulative Dissertation, dass es zum besseren Verständnis der Ursachen von zivilem Widerstand insbesondere Aufmerksamkeit für die Qualität der Governance-Prozesse selbst bedarf. Marktsanierungsprojekte in Ghana sind durch fünf Prozessphasen geprägt: Scoping, Planung, Finanzierung, Standortverlagerung und -zuweisung. In allen Phasen lassen sich jeweils anders gelagerte Kombinationen aus staatlichen Praktiken des Klientelismus und Neoliberalismus, des Aktivismus nichtstaatlicher Akteure sowie externer, globale und entwicklungsorientierter Investitionspraktiken internationaler und bilateraler Agenturen beobachten. In jeder Phase der Stadterneuerung spiegeln sich städtische Governance-Politiken, auf die wiederum stadt-politische Akteure mit Interventionen reagieren, um diesen Politiken entgegen zu wirken. Konzeptionell trägt die vorliegende Studie zu verschiedenen Diskursen bei: eine multidimensionale analytische Rahmung der geographischen Handelsforschung mit Fokus auf Märkte; eine Betrachtung von Aktivismus als zusätzlicher Dimension der städtischen Governance; die Auseinandersetzung mit politisch induzierter Verdrängung durch staatliche Handlungsweisen als alternativem Konstrukt zur Analyse von marktinduzierten Verdrängungsprozessen; und einen Beitrag zu Debatten um städtische Effekte ausländischer Direktinvestitionen. Die Ergebnisse können integrative Stadtentwicklung und eine nachhaltige Existenzgrundlage urbanen Zusammenlebens im anglophonen Westafrika fördern. Weitere Forschung wird empfohlen, um ein Verständnis für die Governance-Prozesse und die Dynamiken städtischer Infrastrukturentwicklung in der Subregion zu generieren.Citizen resistance has characterized urban regeneration in Ghana for many years. Previous studies have indicated that resistance against urban regeneration is caused by non-payment of compensation, lack of participation and the failure of the state to provide relocation sites. Through a qualitative analysis of market redevelopment in Kumasi and Cape Coast, this dissertation argues that we should pay more attention to the politics and activism rooted in the urban governance processes, if we are to understand citizen resistance against urban regeneration in Ghana. Market infrastructural redevelopment in Ghana are implemented through the process of scoping, planning, financing, relocation and allocation. This process is shaped by an interplay of internal state practices of clientelism and neoliberalism and activism of non-state actors, as well as external practices of globalization and development funding by international and bilateral agencies. Every stage of the redevelopment process mirrors the politicized nature of urban governance and citizen intervention by way of activism for changing urban governance. Theoretically, this dissertation contributes a multidimensional analytical framework to marketplace research; activism as an additional dimension of urban governance; politically-induced displacement as an alternative construct for analyzing displacement processes; and to the urban debates around Chinese infrastructure finance. The wider implications of the findings of the study for market redevelopment and urban governance in Anglophone West Africa are discussed. Further research is recommended to provide an understanding of the governance processes and dynamics of other forms of urban infrastructural development taking place in the sub-region

Pursuing PhD by publication in geography: a collaborative autoethnography of two African doctoral researchers

Several scholars have, over the years, written about their experiences of the pathway of PhD by publication (PBP). However, little is known about why African doctoral students pursue PBP and their experiences . In this article, we adopt collaborative autoethnography to document our experiences and motivation for choosing the PBP pathway. Based on our experiences, the choice of PBP is primarily influenced by the candidate's previous research experience and the requirements/practices of the university. The common motivation among African doctoral students is the quest to acquire the requisite research skills and training in journal article publishing and the determination to catch-up in the knowledge economy through the production of high-quality scientific publication. Everyday experiences of PBP are shaped by university expectations, scholarly writing skills, institutional, supervisory and external support systems, research training and resilience. This study concludes by highlighting the positive implications of PBP for educational and socio-economic development in Africa and the world, more generally. It is recommended that journals develop scholar development programs to enable their editors to provide individualized support to PhD students, especially those pursuing PBP

A Report on COVID-19 Lockdown and Housing in Ghana: Insights from Research Impact Activities and Policy Recommendations

This report summarises insights from two research impact activities conducted in Ghana and proposes policy recommendations for improving housing experiences and future pandemic preparedness following the COVID-19 lockdown in Ghana. It categorises the issues discussed into five themes: housing-related issues, urban governance-related issues, law enforcement and public sensitization, accessing housing data, and improvements in service provision. In response to the thematic issues, policy recommendations aimed at addressing challenges faced by landlords and tenants during the lockdown and those that persist post-COVID-19 are proposed. Enhancing sanitation facilities and increasing affordable housing supply, stakeholder engagement in pandemic planning, digital address system uptake were among the recommendations to improve urban governance. Law enforcement refinement and data availability were also emphasised, along with sustaining efficient utility services. The report holds relevance for key stakeholders involved in the built environment

A video documentary on Housing Characteristis, Household Circumstances and Adherence to Covid-19 Health and Safety Protocols in Kumasi, Ghana

This video documentary is based on findings from a Cambridge Africa ALBORADA Grant-funded project on "How Housing Characteristics and Households' Circumstances impacted adherence to Covid-19 health and safety protocols in Kumasi, Ghana. It forms part of outputs produced to support research impact activities in Ghana on the Covid-19 and Housing project mentioned above and was funded by the UKRI All Councils Harmonised Rapid Response Grant.UKRI All Councils Harmonised Rapid Response Gran