Accra: A report by the Ghana Statistical Service revealed that about 4.82 million Ghanaians, roughly 30.8 per cent of the urban population, are living in slums. The figure exceeds the global average of 24.7 per cent but is lower than the Sub-Saharan average of 53.9 per cent.
According to Ghana News Agency, Dr Faustina-Frempong Ainguah, the Deputy Government Statistician, made the presentation in Accra at the launch of a report on Slums and Informal Settlements in Ghana. Slum households lack access to improved sanitation, quality drinking water, durable housing, and adequate room occupancy. The report showed that the Northern and Savannah regions recorded the highest levels of extreme slum intensity. It said slum households in regions like Greater Accra and Ashanti faced precarious living conditions, with more than half living in rented accommodations.
The report also highlighted that multidimensional poverty was more than twice as prevalent in slum areas (23.4 per cent), compared to non-slum areas (10.5 per cent). Education, health, and sanitation outcomes were consistently worse in slum areas, with one in three residents unable to read or write and one in five people having never been to school. Additionally, household death rates in slum areas (41.6 per 10,000 people) exceed those in non-slum areas (30.7 per 10,000 people).
Dr Alhassan Iddrisu, the Government Statistician, noted that the data represented real people and families striving to make a life within difficult constraints. He stressed that with the right commitment, coordination, and policy direction, the country could use the data to change these outcomes. The Service remains committed to producing accessible and user-focused data, which the government could use to design better-targeted development plans and allocate budgets for slum upgrading.
Civil society, he stated, could use the data to support community-led advocacy and expand literacy and empowerment initiatives, especially for women and youth in underserved areas. Development partners could use the data to align funding and technical assistance to long-term, flexible, and locally grounded interventions that empowered both institutions and communities.
Professor Stephen Owusu Kwankye, a senior lecturer at the Regional Institute for Population Studies, University of Ghana, emphasized the importance of the data for policymakers to address challenges in the housing sector. He highlighted the role of urbanisation associated with slums and urged the government to implement measures to address the situation.
