Land Use Planning and Housing Situation in the WA and Offinso South Municipalities, Ghana

Abstract

Housing insufficiency is a major problem confronting most Ghanaian households. The paper examines the state of housing in the Wa and the Offinso South municipalities of Ghana. It investigates the liveability of housing in these municipalities. The housing adequacy across the municipalities is compared. One hundred and twenty housing units in each municipality were surveyed for data gathering. The units of enquiry were the households’ heads and property owners. Questionnaires were used to obtain data from respondents. It finds that most of the houses surveyed lack basic facilities. It notes that most households in the municipalities lack adequate housing. The paper observes statistically significant difference in the room occupancy rates, flooring materials, households’ access to toilet facilities, mode of disposing liquid waste, and quality of bathing facilities across the municipalities. The paper however, finds no statistically distinguishable difference between the quality of outer wall, roofing materials, drinking water quality and solid waste disposal modes in the municipalities. Again, non-adherence to planning regulations is partly responsible for the state of housing in the municipalities. The paper notes that deprived housing conditions have significant negative impact on protected lands and environmentally vulnerable areas of the municipalities. It recommends the use of both social force and the legal regime to discourage environmentally unfriendly acts in the municipalities. Again, it recommends the enforcement of regulations on the provision of in-house toilet and bathing facilities and de-emphasizing of public toilets delivery.

Key words: Housing Situation, Housing Infrastructure, Planning Regulations, Wa, Offinso-South, Ghana