Participation as a Concept and in Practice: Deciphering the Nature and the Politics of Realising Participatory Slum Upgrading Initiatives in Accra, Ghana

Abstract

The centrality of diversity and inclusivity in all urban development interventions has been recognized globally and endorsed by the Sustainable Development Goals. Consequently, participatory slum upgrading has been widely accepted as a suitable way to sustainably redevelop informal settlements. However, the terms ‘participation,’ ‘inclusion,’ and ‘collaboration’ are frequently romanticized and invoked for such programs but rarely actualized in practice. To paraphrase Aaron Wildavsky, the terms have become, at the same time, everything and nothing. Against this backdrop, the current research bridges the theory-practice gap by interrogating the grounded realities of two participatory slum upgrading programs funded by the World Bank and UN-Habitat in Accra, Ghana’s capital and most populous city. These programs have received numerous plaudits from academics, city officials, and transnational organizations. Using robust primary data, the analysis will be approached from two angles. First, residents and their community groups will be surveyed to ascertain the extent to which their needs and interests were considered and their satisfaction level with the participatory process. Of particular importance will be the insights of marginalized groups (e.g., women and people with disabilities) who tend to be excluded from numerous urban projects. Second, interviews will be conducted to unpack the roles of politics and power dynamics in influencing decisions and how this may exclude and/or include priority groups that participatory initiatives purport to target. The study will also identify the informal strategies residents adopt to ensure their views and opinions are heard.