UN housing expert urges Ghana to strengthen Rent Control Department amid housing affordability concerns

The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing has advised Ghana to support its Rent Control Department with the requisite logistics to boost operations. 

Koldo Casla said the Government should also ensure that all relevant institutional mechanisms were strengthened for effective monitoring to curb arbitrary rent increases that did not bode well for tenants. 

A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency by the UN Special Rapporteur at the weekend observed that unaffordability of formally built housing had left many Ghanaians with no choice but to find their way into informal settlements. 

The statement, which highlighted his conclusion of a 12-day official visit to Ghana, said: “During the visit, I observed the housing construction and physical transformations taking place primarily in Accra.” 

“I could see flashy billboards around the capital promoting real estate investments at stratospheric prices far from the reach of the average Ghanaian.” 

The statement said it was important the authorities realised that general unaffordability of formally built housing had left many Ghanaians with no choice but to find their way into informal settlements. 

“About 31 per cent of the urban population lives in informal settlements,” it said, adding that a considerable number of the citizens were also homeless. 

The statement encouraged the authorities to actively listen to the needs of people living in poverty in the design of public policies regarding housing. 

“Construction is one of the leading industries and fastest growing sectors in Ghana, employing hundreds of thousands of people, with an estimated contribution ranging between seven and 15 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product,” it said. 

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