Conflicts and governance of landfills in a developing country city, Accra

A key challenge associated with rapid urbanization in much of the developing world (including Ghana) is the disposal of municipal solid waste. This has engendered numerous conflicts between municipal authorities and communities located near landfills. While these conflicts have attracted much media concerns in Ghana, not enough academic research has been carried out to unearth the root causes and consequences of these conflicts. More importantly, increased urbanization and concomitant growth of real estates in peri-urban areas of large Ghanaian cities such as Accra, have meant that landfills must compete with residential land use resulting in closer proximity of landfill sites to residential neighbourhoods. Thus, increasingly due to the intense competition for land the capacity of the peri-urban areas of large cities to absorb urban-generated waste is compromised. This paper attempts to bridge this knowledge gap by highlighting the issues of conflicts and governance using two peri-urban landfills in Accra as a case study. It argues that landfill-related conflicts are the result of the existing land ownership system and the consequent outcomes of poor spatial planning and management of metropolitan fringe areas. The study concludes that resolving landfill-related conflicts must start with tackling the land question which should then create a space for promoting forward planning involving the active participation of chiefs and community members. Again, studies on the acquisition, management and governance of landfills in the developed world could provide useful lessons for Ghana and other developing countries.

► Limited studies have been carried out in Ghana on landfills and land use conflicts.
► Development control inadequacy leads to close proximity of landfill and residence.
► Landfill-related conflicts are the result of the existing land ownership system.
► Resolving the conflict must start with tackling existing land ownership question.