Cities and extreme weather events: impacts of flooding and extreme heat on water and electricity services in Ghana

Kayaga, Sam; Amankwaa, Ebenezer Forkuo; Gough, Katherine V.; Wilby, Rob; Abarike, Mercy A.; Codjoe, Samuel Nii Ardey; Kasei, Raymond Abudu; Nabilse, Cuthbert K; Yankson, P.W.K.; Mensah, Peter; Abdullah, Karim; Griffiths, Paula

doi:10.1177/0956247820952030

Cited by 28 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Given that mobilisations to improve equity become manifested through the politics of breakdown, maintenance, and inadequacy of infrastructure access, informality should be consciously incorporated into progressive urban energy politics in order to promote inclusive and affordable energy and sustainable cities for all (cf. Kayaga et al, 2021; Obeng-Odoom, 2013; Watson, 2009). In this sense, informality should be seen not as a victim of urbanisation but as heterogeneously inherent to the urbanisation process.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Everyday contours and politics of infrastructure: Informal governance of electricity access in urban Ghana

Amankwaa

Gough

2021

Urban Studies

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This article contributes to shaping the discourse on unequal geographies of infrastructure and governance in the global South, opening up new ways of thinking through politics, practices and modalities of power. Conceptually, informality, governance and everyday urbanism are drawn on to unpack how the formal encounters the informal in ways that (re)configure infrastructure geographies and governance practices. This conceptual framing is empirically employed through an analysis of electricity access in Accra, Ghana, highlighting how residents navigate unequal electricity topographies, engage in self-help initiatives, and negotiate informal networks and formal governance practices. The spatiality of the electricity infrastructure has created inequity and opportunities for exploitation by ‘power-owners’ and ‘power-agents’ who control and manage the electricity distribution network and, in turn, privately supply power. Electricity connections are negotiated, access is monetised and illegality excused on grounds of good-neighbourliness, thereby producing and perpetuating everyday politics of ‘making do’. Community movements, everyday acts of improvisation, and incremental modifications are shown to influence the workings of formal institutions of government and shape uneven power relations and experiences of inequality. Such an understanding of how marginalised residents navigate the electricity topographies of Accra reveals a more nuanced politics of infrastructure access, which reflects the complex realities of hybridised modalities of governance and the multiple everyday dimensions of power that shape urban space. The article concludes that informality should not be recognised as failure but as a sphere of opportunity, innovation and transition.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Everyday contours and politics of infrastructure: Informal governance of electricity access in urban Ghana

Amankwaa

Gough

2021

Urban Studies

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“…In particular, access to drinking water-that is reliable both in terms of quality and flowis crucial for all household members, especially those engaging in physical income-generating activities. Interruptions to the electricity supply, which is often already irregular, are increased during periods of extreme heat, having a detrimental impact on many livelihood activities, such as garment makers (Chen and Sinha 2016;Kayaga et al 2021).…”

Section: Livelihood Vulnerability To Extreme Heat Is Exacerbated By P...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Beating the Heat

2022

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The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent.ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by ADB in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned.By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term "country" in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area.

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“…Extreme heat and flooding have a long history in Tamale, with multiple severe events recorded since 1950 (Kayaga et al, 2021). Poor urban governance, particularly inadequate planning and encroachment on waterways, is seen as responsible for the frequent and increasing incidents of flooding in Ghanaian cities (Fuseini, 2016).…”

Section: Outcomes and Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resilient Governance Regimes That Support Urban Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Cities: Learning From Local Challenges

Merino¹,

Gajjar²,

Subedi³

et al. 2021

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Local governments in Sub-Saharan Africa face the daunting task of high urban growth and potentially devastating impacts of climate change across local communities and the economy. Urban and peri-urban food production can be among nature-based strategies planned for improving urban food security, reducing emissions, and climate adaptation. Co-operative governance, strategic planning, and accountable institutions are needed to support urban agriculture (UA), in the face of climate risks, unplanned urban development, the gendered nature of food provision, and the inability of urban farmers to self-organize toward optimal market and land access outcomes. Using a case study approach guided by qualitative content analysis with information derived from web analysis, we apply the Institutional Analysis and Development Framework to analyze underlying governance factors for UA in three selected Sub-Saharan African cities. Our three case cities of Kampala, Tamale and Cape Town reveal that UA is beginning to receive policy attention toward food security, and recognition for generating environmental, ecological, health, and human well-being benefits. Literature from specific cities however does not yet signal a local awareness and policy thrust regarding the associated and pertinent climate adaptation benefits of urban agriculture. We therefore recommend trans-disciplinary, locally-led, planning-based, and multi-sectoral approaches, involving a range of stakeholders toward recognizing and achieving the climate adaptation, environmental (ecologically restorative) and food security benefits of pursuing urban agriculture. This signals a larger role for the practice in sustainability discourse and SDGs 2 and 11, scaling out and up across large, medium and small towns, and cities of Sub-Saharan Africa.

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Cities and extreme weather events: impacts of flooding and extreme heat on water and electricity services in Ghana

Cited by 28 publications

References 40 publications

Everyday contours and politics of infrastructure: Informal governance of electricity access in urban Ghana

Everyday contours and politics of infrastructure: Informal governance of electricity access in urban Ghana

Beating the Heat

Resilient Governance Regimes That Support Urban Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Cities: Learning From Local Challenges

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