The Political Economy of Housing and Urban Development in Africa

by Konadu-Agyemang, Kwadwo

• ISBN13: 9780275970031
• ISBN10: 0275970035
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-10-30
• Publisher: Praeger Pub Text

Summary

Providing adequate, accessible, and affordable housing is a major problem affecting many African countries. Focusing on the West African country of Ghana, Konadu-Agyemang explores the urban housing question in light of current development theories. He concludes that it would be naive to see Ghana's housing crisis primarily as a result of political instability or economic mismanagement. Instead, the author argues that economic and social problems in Africa are products of the structural distortions created by colonialism and the draining of African resources to European countries. The postcolonial continuation of relations of dependency has led to underdevelopment, which is manifested in malformed urban areas characterized by housing shortages, slum environments, and atrophied infrastructures. Konadu-Agyemang concludes that affordable housing in Ghana will only occur with the implementation of policies aimed at decreasing Ghana's dependence on imported building materials and standards. Solutions to the housing crisis in Ghana require remedies to both the internal constraints that impede development and the inequities in the global economy that foster dependency and neo-colonialism.

Author Biography

Kwadwo Konadu-Agyemang is an Assistant Professor of Geography and Planning at the University of Akron

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments	ix
Introduction	1	(10)
The Housing Question in the Context of Political Economy	1	(3)
Objectives of This Book	4	(1)
Significance of the Book	5	(1)
Data Sources	6	(3)
Structure/Chapter Summaries	9	(2)
The Political Economy of Urbanization, Urban Growth and (Under) Development in Sub-Saharan Africa	11	(30)
Introduction	11	(2)
Urbanization, Urban Growth and Underdevelopment in Sub-Saharan Africa: The State of the Theories	13	(6)
The Political Economy of Sub-Saharan African Urbanization	19	(6)
The Political Economy of Underdevelopment in Ghana with emphasis on Housing and Infrastructure	25	(10)
Peripheral Capitalism and the Housing Question	35	(3)
Towards a Synthesis of Colonialism and Housing Underdevelopment in Ghana	38	(3)
Urban Population Dynamics in Ghana: 1921--1998	41	(20)
Introduction	41	(1)
Components of Urbanization and Urban Growth	41	(5)
Rapid Urbanization and Urban Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa and Their Ramifications	46	(1)
Determinants of Urban Population Growth in Ghana	47	(8)
Empirical Analysis of Urban Growth in Ghana	55	(3)
The Urban System in Ghana	58	(2)
Consequences of Urbanization and Implications for Housing and Infrastructure Policies	60	(1)
Accra-From a Fishing Village to a Millionaire City: The Political Economy of the Growth of an African City	61	(20)
Development and Expansion of Accra	61	(14)
The Impact of Colonial Transport Expansion on the Growth of Accra	75	(1)
Demographic and Household Composition	76	(1)
The Spatial Structure and Internal Dynamics of Accra	77	(4)
Housing and Related Infrastructure in Accra: The State of Affairs	81	(20)
Introduction	81	(1)
Access to Accommodation: A Nightmare	82	(1)
Housing Types in Accra	83	(10)
Physical Composition of Dwellings in Accra	93	(2)
City Administration	95	(2)
Summary	97	(4)
Housing Delivery, Demand and Affordability in Ghana with Special Reference to Accra	101	(36)
Introduction	101	(1)
The Housing Delivery System	102	(1)
Housing Tenure in Urban Ghana: Choice or Constraint?	103	(2)
The Affordability Question	105	(2)
Home Ownership	107	(10)
Housing Costs in Pre-and Post-Structural Adjustment Periods	117	(7)
Institutional Housing Finance	124	(3)
The Housing Finance Crisis	127	(3)
Land Delivery and Holdings	130	(7)
The Political Economy of Town Planning, Housing Policy and Strategies in Ghana: From Colonial Times to Present	137	(40)
From Early Colonial Times to 1948	137	(4)
Government and Housing in the Post-War Era	141	(15)
Government Involvement in Housing	156	(13)
Government Regulations	169	(2)
Government and Land	171	(2)
Government and Housing Finance	173	(1)
Summary	173	(4)
Housing Policies in Ghana: Towards Strategies for the Future	177	(30)
Introduction	177	(1)
Housing Provision in the Pre-Capitalist Era	177	(2)
Housing Policy Objectives	179	(1)
Housing Policy in Ghana: Which Model?	180	(4)
Impact of Colonial and Neo-colonial Heritage on Housing Standards	184	(2)
Directions for Future Housing Policies and Strategies	186	(16)
A Postscript of Hope: The Tema Co-operative Pilot Scheme	202	(5)
Bibliography	207	(22)
Index	229