Four ways to make Ghana's cities more sustainable

Walking through Kumasi, the capital city of the Ashanti Region in southern Ghana, you’ll be struck by the rapid pace of change.

The city is alive with construction, roadside enterprises and a sense of growing ambition. But it’s also clear that this growth is outpacing the city’s ability to manage it. Overflowing waste bins, traffic gridlock, and heat bouncing off asphalt roads paint a picture of progress under pressure.

Ghana’s cities are changing rapidly—and if we want that change to be sustainable, we must act now. That’s why the Government of Ghana and the World Bank have produced the Ghana Sustainable Cities Strategy to make Ghana’s urban areas the engines of more green, resilient, inclusive and prosperous urban growth.

Why Sustainability Can’t Wait

The Ghana Sustainable Cities Strategy maps out 72 sustainable development indicators to measure the sustainability of urban areas in Ghana, drawing on Ghanaian data sources and local research. It identifies areas of relative strength and weakness shaping urban areas in the country.

Ghana’s urban population has more than quadrupled since 1990, reaching over 17 million people. With more than half the population living in cities, the benefits of urbanization—economic growth, job creation, and human development—are clear. But these gains are being strained by unplanned sprawl, weak infrastructure, and rising greenhouse gas emissions.

The way Ghana builds its cities today will shape the country’s carbon footprint, climate vulnerability, and social equity for generations to come. Despite currently low emissions, urban centers are trending toward high-carbon growth models. If nothing changes, emissions from cities could nearly quadruple by 2050. In short, Ghana’s urban sustainability challenge is not a distant problem—it’s unfolding in real time. 

Building on this in-depth analysis, the Strategy offers four recommendations of how Ghana can build more sustainable cities:

1. Start With Cities on the Brink of Transformation: Seven fast-growing urban clusters—Bolgatanga, Denu, Ho, Sunyani, Tamale, Techiman, and Wa—are at a pivotal moment. These cities are expanding rapidly, but they haven’t yet locked in unsustainable, poorly planned development patterns. This is the sweet spot for strategic investment: targeted support in these cities can steer growth toward low-risk, compact, and connected forms. Unlike Accra and Kumasi, which require costly retrofitting, these mid-sized cities offer a chance to build right the first time. Development partners can help by tailoring assistance to local priorities, focusing on long-term impact instead of short-term fixes.
   
   
2. Invest Where It Matters Most: In a resource-constrained environment, Ghana must focus on sectors with the highest return for sustainability. Solid waste management, urban mobility, affordable housing, and land management are the four critical areas. Improved waste systems can drastically cut emissions from open burning (currently done by nearly a quarter of urban households) while reducing flood risks and cleaning up neighborhoods. Affordable, well-located housing can curb sprawl and reduce social inequality. Better land management can help plan cities more smartly, avoiding risky floodplains and supporting green spaces. And investing in public transit, walking, and cycling can shift cities away from car dependence, reducing both emissions and congestion.
   
   
3. Unlock Local and Private Financing: Sustainable infrastructure needs sustainable financing. Today, most urban infrastructure in Ghana is paid for by the national government, with local governments contributing relatively little. That model isn’t scalable. Cities must tap into new revenue streams—particularly property taxes and land value capture. As land values rise in urban areas, municipalities should be able to capture a portion of that value to fund public services. But that requires better asset documentation, fair and transparent tax systems, and stronger land registries. Private capital is also essential. The Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund and existing PPP frameworks provide a foundation, but more must be done to de-risk urban investments. Longer-term contracts, transparent procurement, and stronger payment guarantees can help attract serious investors, especially in transport and waste systems.
   
   
4. Collaborate Across Boundaries: The challenges Ghanaian cities face—climate risks, waste, transport, housing—don’t stop at municipal borders. But our solutions often do. Ghana’s current urban governance system lacks incentives and structures for metropolitan-scale collaboration. We need better mechanisms to coordinate investments across city boundaries and jurisdictions. This could include joint infrastructure planning, shared service delivery, or even updated governance frameworks that better reflect how cities grow and function. Development partners also have a role to play. Dozens of donors are already supporting urban development in Ghana—but without better coordination, efforts risk duplication or dilution. Anchoring donor support in national strategies like the Ghana Sustainable Cities Strategy can help align priorities and make every cedi and dollar go further.

The Crossroads for Ghana’s Cities

Urbanization is inevitable—but sustainability is a choice.

Ghana stands at a crossroads. It can follow the path of unplanned expansion, rising inequality, and climate vulnerability. Or it can choose to build cities that are green, inclusive, and ready for the future.

As outlined in the Ghana Sustainable Cities Strategy, we know what works. We have the data. We have the plans. What’s needed now is focused, strategic, and collaborative action.

The next generation of Ghanaians deserves cities they can thrive in. Let’s build them before it’s too late.