Challenges of slum dwellers in Ghana: the case study of Ayigya, Kumasi

摘要

Slums are known to exist in almost every nation on earth. About one-third of the world’s population lives in slums. The conditions of slums pose several negative effects on the dwellers. This paper examines the living, housing, sanitation and hygienic conditions of slum dwellers. It attempts to explain why people choose to live in slum areas, and the challenges they face drawing inferences from the case being Ayigya, a slum in Kumasi, Ghana. The investigation involved a deskwork and field survey. A combination of primary and secondary data was assembled. The major sources of data employed were obtained from heads of households who were purposively selected. A sample size of 99 houses was selected from a sampling frame of 1,181 at a margin of error of 0.1. Questionnaires and interview guides were designed to answer the research questions for the study. The living conditions of the dwellers are poor resulting from low incomes. There is poor housing maintenance culture among the dwellers. This has resulted in over half of the houses in dilapidated states. Since the slum area has no properly constructed drains, stagnant waters are predominant with pockets of weedy areas serving as breeding places for mosquitoes and other diseases carrier insects. Several challenges are faced by Ayigya dwellers including water and sanitation problems, overcrowding and poor housing conditions. Policy reforms on slums, sensitization on the need for housing maintenance, funding mechanisms for housing, public education on the need for good environmental sanitation, and improvement in access to water and sanitation services are commensurate for the development of Ayigya.