By Richard Kofi Attenkah
The Deputy Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Nii Lantey Vanderpuye, has charged Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMAs) throughout the country to allocate some open spaces to serve as public spaces for all, in order to create inclusive, integrative and liveable cities and towns in Ghana.
According to him, pedestrians feel safe and secure on clearly designated walkways, and these encourage more people to choose walking as a form of exercise. Again, walkways are also good for the reason that as people have spaces to walk around they scare off criminals.
He said this at a durbar to commemorate the 2015 World Habitat Day and the maiden public sensitisation on urbanisation under the theme: “Public Space for all” in Tema.
Mr Vanderpuye expressed his disappointment at how public spaces in Ghana, especially, in urban areas, have been encroached upon, and taken over completely by street vendors and hawkers, leaving pedestrians to struggle with vehicles for space on the streets.
He added that the situation is not only posing traffic jams on our streets, but rather endangering the lives of pedestrians. He further noted that fragmented market lands, coupled with multiple sales, have brought about a myriad of challenges in urban planning and development control in our cities and towns.
“In the same vein, most of the MMDAs continue to re-zone to alter the land use plans of our cities and towns, which compromises existing public spaces for commercial gain. “This phenomenon, if not checked, will pose a significant threat to the availability of public spaces, and this results in urban sprawl and poor environmental conditions and other challenges associated with urbanisation,” he revealed.
He called on the media to devote their time to sensitising the public on the planning of human settlements and other social amenities required in living a dignifying life. Meanwhile, Ms. Christine Evans-Klock, UN Resident Coordinator, in a speech read on behalf of the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki- moon, said today’s theme is placed into a historical perspective, given the adoption of the sustainable development agenda by over 150 heads of states at the United Nations.
She continued: “The adoption of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development is an inspiring new framework that will guild our efforts to end poverty and ensure prosperity for all on a healthy planet.”
“The new sustainable development goals, which includes SDG 11 to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable to represent a broad international consensus that recognises sustainable urban development as a transformational approach.”
As part of an integrated agenda, cities and human settlements have an important role to play across the entire spectrum of the 2030 agenda, she revealed.