Local Governance analyst, Nii Amon Kotei, has blamed Ghana’s recurring decongestion and flooding problems on a systemic lack of leadership and weak enforcement of urban planning regulations.

His comments follow the Accra Metropolitan Assembly’s (AMA) latest decongestion exercise aimed at clearing street traders from the Central Business District (CBD) to restore order and improve sanitation in the capital.

In the early hours of Tuesday, May 20, 2025, AMA task forces, supported by the Ghana Police Service, dismantled makeshift stalls and unauthorised structures along key areas, including Kinbu Road to Railways, ECG Junction to the King Tackie Tawiah Statue, and Opera Square through to Adabraka.

While the AMA says the operation is part of efforts to enforce city bylaws and ensure pedestrian and vehicular safety, Kotei believes the root cause lies deeper.

Speaking on Morning Starr with Naa Dedei Tettey, the governance expert said Ghana’s failure to enforce its own laws consistently was the main reason for the persistent urban challenges.

He cited the existence of long-standing legislation, including the Town and Country Planning Act of 1945 and the Land Use and Spatial Planning Act of 2016, as evidence that the legal framework exists but is not effectively implemented.

“The issue at stake is simple. We are not serious as a country when it comes to the enforcement of our urban planning system in Ghana – we are not serious at all. Ghana is one of the countries in Africa that has enacted all the laws, but we are not enforcing them. The urban planning system in Ghana is a significant challenge. Despite the existence of legislation like the Town and Country Planning Act, enacted in 1945, and the Land Use and Spatial Planning Act in 2015, why do we have all these laws?

It is just to promote development and enable our law enforcement to implement them and control our people. All this boils down to leadership. Because we often put square pegs in round holes. Look at Accra, for example – it is our capital city. When you’re driving on our highways, look at how dirty and filthy everywhere is. People are throwing trash everywhere. Why? Who is our leader? And where are our leaders?” he questioned.

Kotei further criticised what he described as “knee-jerk reactions” by authorities in response to predictable events like flooding.

“So, as you are saying, it is a very recurring situation, and we don’t do anything about it. When they see that the rains are going to fall and flooding starts – as we saw, I think, two or three days ago – then they come up with this knee-jerk reaction to create the impression that they want to streamline the activities. It is all about planning. It is all about planning. Because the population keeps increasing, and people want to build."

"But is it fair, as a country, to allow our own people to build on waterways, to build on buffer zones and Ramsar sites? Where is our enforcement when it comes to town and country planning? The people who are in charge — the ones who know best, who are the technical people?” he lamented.

He called for a systematic, year-round enforcement regime and the empowerment of technical planning officials to act decisively.

Kotei added, “So it will keep reoccurring unless we enforce, we create a systematic enforcement policy, and making sure that we enforce our urban planning activities for people to adhere to the rules and regulations.”