Ministry of Local Government ends two-day Urban Observatory workshop in Accra

The Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation, and Rural Development (MLGDRD), in collaboration with Expertise France, has concluded a two-day Urban Observatory indicator validation workshop in Accra.

The workshop, held on October 8-9, 2024, was part of the broader Sustainable Cities Project, which was launched in Tamale on September 25, 2024, to improve urban planning, local accountability, and public financial management.

The €15 million project, set to span 58 months, aims to strengthen sustainable and inclusive municipal services, focusing on urban solid waste segregation, access to water, and recreational spaces.

Six Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in northern Ghana, including Tamale, Sagnarigu, Yendi, Wa, Bolgatanga, Damongo, and Nalerigu, will benefit from this initiative. The project is funded by the European Union (EU) in Ghana.

Key areas of focus include building sustainable waste management systems and enhancing water access and recreational facilities, particularly for vulnerable populations like women and children.

The two-day workshop brought together experts and stakeholders who reviewed and refined the indicators for the Urban Observatory initiative.

Urban areas in Ghana face increasing vulnerability to climate change impacts such as floods, droughts, and heat stress due to rapid, unplanned expansion and growing informal settlements. Local authorities are struggling to cope with the infrastructure deficits caused by this rapid urbanisation.

Ghana is also committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 64 MtCO2e, with a focus on resilient and sustainable urban infrastructure.

The country’s draft National Urban Policy (NUP) reflects the importance of cities as engines of sustainable growth.

However, challenges such as the lack of detailed data on urban services and environmental or geospatial evidence-based planning may hinder the achievement of these policy goals.

To address this, the Ministry has finalised a revised NUP, designed to create resilient, inclusive, and sustainable urban settlements. The policy emphasises the need for an online data platform featuring urban indices and monitoring tools to support local and national urban monitoring.

In this context, the EU-Ghana Sustainable Cities Programme (Phase 1) is supporting the MLGDRD, the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), and the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) to establish and operationalise an Urban Observatory.

Urban observatories are essential for helping decision-makers collect, analyze, and apply data to urban policies.