Challenges
Decades of Disparate Planning Efforts
Globalization has artificially inflated the costs of housing in Accra to levels far beyond attainable for median income.
There is a dire need for additional housing which is linked to the local economy, rather than the global one.
$700
Median monthly income
$1750
Average rent in formal housing market
In the 1980s, the Ghanaian federal government shifted the provision of housing from government-led to the private market, resulting in massive giveaways of federal land to private developers, and a range of preferential treatments for international investors around taxation and trade policy. Ghana also relies on international investment for the development of large scale infrastructure, both from institutions like the World Bank and other nations. This reliance on foreign funds establishes a debt-based investment environment so predatory that in some cases the government has ceded control of natural resources to foreign governments. This positioning results in a highly extractive arrangement, where international funds circulate in the upper echelons of Ghanaian and international finance before being returned plus interest to foreign lenders.
This disconnect is stark in Accra’s housing market. According to Global Property Guide, “A 75 sq. m apartment would cost about US$200,000, and would rent for around US$1,750 per month”. In comparison, median monthly salary in Accra is $700, while even the 25th percentile only earns $1700. This makes clear a very limited percentage of Ghanaians could afford their own apartment on the formal market. This results in a massive reliance on informal and compound housing, often consisting of cramped and unsanitary conditions.