Achieving Healthy City Development in Ghana: Referencing Sustainable Development Goal 11

Abstract

Despite the growing responsiveness in creating eco-friendly cities with reference to SDG 11, little attention has been focused on the role of Ghanaian local authorities (i.e., District Assemblies (DAs)) in achieving this global feat. Therefore, this study seeks to assess the views of personnel working with Ghana’s District Assemblies on the achievement of healthy city development (HCD) through the lens of SDG 11. Data were obtained from 165 key personnel currently working with the District Assemblies in Ghana through structured close-ended questionnaires. The data gathered from the respondents were analyzed via descriptive and inferential statistics. Results from this study revealed that personnel working in the DAs of Ghana possess an average level of awareness of the SDG 11 indicators. Furthermore, the findings revealed a low level of achievement of development toward attaining healthy cities in Ghana. Subsequently, the findings also revealed four (4) critical challenges encountered in achieving HCD with the topmost being the ‘lack of financial resources for implementing healthy city policies’. The findings from this study pioneer knowledge on the scarce literature sources on the topic within the Ghanaian context. It also provides insight into the current level of achievement of SDG 11 targets in Ghana.