Government of Ghana Partners with Cities Alliance to Host Special Session of the Ghana Urban Forum in Accra 13 July 2011

For Immediate Release:

Date: Thursday, June 30, 2011
Contact No.: +1 (202) 473 1935
E-mail: info@citiesalliance.org
Web: www.citiesalliance.org

The Government of Ghana, represented by the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development will host a Special Session of the Ghana Urban Forum in partnership with the Cities Alliance.

The Forums provide permanent space where all stakeholders in the urban development debate in Ghana can come together to arrive at a national consensus on issues and approaches to dealing with the challenges and opportunities of rapid urbanisation. The Special Session will enable policy dialogue on planning for an urban future in Ghana and in Africa.

With an urbanisation rate of 4 per cent Ghana is one of the most rapidly urbanising countries on the Sub-Saharan African continent. Estimates are that 51 per cent of the population of 24 million lives in cities and towns, resulting in pressure on already weak infrastructure, a rise in informal settlements and the exclusion of significant numbers of the citizens from basic rights due them.

The challenges of rapid urbanisation however, also present tremendous opportunities as the Government of Ghana is poised to harness these to their maximum potential to help attain middle income status by 2015.

Part of this response is the establishment of a national forum, created in partnership with Cooperative Housing Foundation (CHF), the international NGO in collaboration with the Institute of Local Government Studies as a common ground for all stakeholders to dialogue and build partnerships for action. The first forum was organised in March 2009 under the theme, “Promoting the Urban Agenda: Meeting the Challenges of Urbanization and Poverty in Ghana and Africa”. Since then there have been four other forums.

Cities Alliance will support the continuation of these national forums as part the ongoing Ghana Land Services and Citizenship for the Urban Poor programme, a partnership initiative undertaken by the Government and its support partners to align urban development efforts at the national, local and community levels. Facilitated by the Cities Alliance the LSC programme seeks to:

Support national and local policy dialogue to promote sustainable urbanisation, ensure the empowerment of local governments, and reinforce the importance of active community participation.
Strengthen the capacity of local government to inclusively plan and manage urban growth.
Empower organisations of the urban poor to actively engage in local development.

Key LSC partners include: The Government of Ghana which is implementing the LSC through the Urban Development Unit (UDU) and the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS), both under the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD). Local partners include the Ghana Federation of the Urban Poor, People’s Dialogue, and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).

These partners are in turn supported by international organisations including Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), Shack/Slum Dwellers International (SDI), UN-HABITAT, and the World Bank.

Date:    Wednesday, 13 July 2011
Venue: La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, No. 1 Bypass Accra, PO Box OS 3000, Accra, GHANA,
              Tel.: 233 217 71700
Time:    8:30 AM to 3:30 PM

Speakers will include:

Honorable Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Government of Ghana
Professor Naa Nabila, Member of Council of State and Chairman
Mr. Paul-Victor Obeng, Chair, National Development Planning Commission, Ghana
Hon. Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije, Mayor of Accra
Mr. Farouk Braimah, People’s Dialogue/SDI
Jean-Pierre Elong Mbassi, Executive Secretary, United Cities and Local Government-Africa
Ms. Clare Short, Chair, Cities Alliance Policy Advisory Forum and former UK Minister for International Development
Hon. Simone Compaore, Mayor, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Ms. Sarah Ibanda, ACTogether, Uganda
William Cobbett, Manager, Cities Alliance