Urbanization and disaster in Accra, Ghana. Does human life matters?

Abstract

This article discusses urbanization and disaster in the capital city of Ghana - Accra. Urbanization refers to the population shift from rural to urban residency, the gradual increase in the proportion of people living in urban areas, and the ways in which each society adapts to this change. It is predominantly the process by which towns and cities are formed and become larger as more people begin living and working in central areas. Urbanization has its own good and evil. In spite of the positive effect of urbanization, in Ghana one can conclude that urbanization has done more harm than good. This article reveals some catastrophic effects of urbanization and suggested solutions.

Keywords

• urbanization
• disaster
• district assembly common fund (dacf)
• population
• environmental impact assessment
• environmental auditing
• municipal, metropolitan and the district assemblies (mmadas)
• community-based health planning services (chps)