Former Chief Executive of the District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP), Nii Lante Vanderpuye, has raised concerns that Accra’s fast urban growth has not been matched with equal investment in key infrastructure such as drainage systems and waste management facilities.
His comments follow the heavy flooding that hit parts of the capital on Monday, June 29, after several hours of intense rainfall. The floods submerged homes, roads, and businesses, forcing residents and motorists to find safer ground as movement across the city was disrupted.
Mr Vanderpuye said Accra is experiencing what he described as “very critical and unprecedented growth,” but authorities have not developed the infrastructure needed to support this expansion.
He explained that while the city continues to grow in population and physical development, essential systems like drainage networks and waste management services have not expanded at the same pace.
According to him, this gap between urban growth and infrastructure development has worsened environmental conditions and increased the city’s vulnerability to repeated flooding.
He called for stronger urban planning and sustained investment to ensure that infrastructure development keeps up with the city’s expanding population.
“Accra has gone through very critical and unprecedented growth. This growth pattern has not been proportional to the development of social infrastructure. Accra is growing in population and in social infrastructure such as buildings and streets.
“However, there has not been a proportional development of infrastructure such as waste management facilities, drains, and others that would support the living conditions of the people in Accra,” he said.
