Proper sanitation practices protect communities from diseases and maintain a clean and safe environment to promote the social, economic, and physical wellbeing of the population. In Ghana, liquid waste management has been largely neglected and remains an urgent issue with nationwide implications. In 2017, there were 41 million cases of diarrhoea and 7,300 related deaths in Ghana, much of it owing to poor sanitation. It has been estimated that as much as 88% of diarrhoeal disease in Accra and 75% of child deaths from cholera and diarrhoea in the country can be traced to this factor. The...

Over the past decades, the Accra Metropolitan Area has witnessed major development, but this growth has given rise to risks of its own. Rapid urbanization has caused an unplanned expansion of built-up areas like roads, parking lots and other structures with impervious surfaces, which has led to perennial flooding. Inadequacies of drainage systems and poor solid waste management add to this threat that is only bound to intensify in the future as climate change poses further challenges on cities and nations. Accra urgently needs a comprehensive flood risk mitigation strategy that includes...

Even with Ghana’s impressive economic growth in recent times, the country’s industries still lag behind the services sector in its contribution to both GDP and employment. Ghanaian manufacturers struggle to overcome the difficulties posed by infrastructure problems, informality, and the lack of skilled labour and good management practices. Financial constraints, high cost of doing business, and difficulties to access credit also make growth harder for companies of all sizes.

Across the world, countries have imposed social distancing regulations to avoid overwhelming the health care capacity during the corona pandemic — the so-called “flatten the curve.” Such a policy can be sensible. The first peer-reviewed cost-benefit analysis of the US shows just that. It looks at moderate social distancing, an approach similar to Sweden’s. Here, social interaction is reduced about 40 percent, allowing schools and work to stay open but dramatically reducing contacts in all other public areas.

Ghana’s economy has shown robust growth in the past two decades, with GDP per capita increasing by 88% in real terms during this period. Still, poverty remains a challenge, especially among the rural population. For an economy largely reliant on agriculture and mineral resource mining like Ghana’s, land plays a crucial role in development. However, the land structure in the country is complicated, with most holdings remaining in customary ownership, untitled, and undocumented. This generates problems of disputes and inadequate utilization of the property.

On the Adam Carolla Show, I recently discussed why corona policies will do more harm than good in many developing countries, and that there are much more effective ways to save lives.