The Volta River Project: planning, housing and resettlement in Ghana, 1950–1965
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Date
2019-08-12
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The Journal of Architecture ISSN:
Abstract
This paper investigates the housing schemes proposed in connection with
the Volta River Project, Ghana, in the mid-1950s to early 1960s. The Volta
River Project formed part of Kwame Nkrumah’s vision for Ghana’s modernisation
and industrialisation in the wake of political independence.
Three associated worker housing schemes demonstrated somewhat contradictory
design and construction methods, from high specification,
extensive amenities, and comprehensive servicing, through to self-build
‘core’ houses amounting to little more than single-room dwellings. The
paper traces the complex and controversial history of these schemes, supplemented
with findings of several field trips to the settlements in question,
to unravel the value of the ‘Core Houses’ approach. The most
successful project to incorporate indigenous agency and true collaboration
was the semi-formal ‘Combined Area’ housing at Akosombo, a
positive model for shared agency and collaboration in planning,
housing, and facilities delivery. Sitting alongside the carefully manicured
plan of Akosombo, with its regulated market, excellent health care and
desire to set high standards of cleanliness, the Combined Area has not
only provided homes for the lower-paid and labouring workers of the
town, but has developed over time into a settlement where professionals
and retired government workers are also now residing, not out of necessity
but by choice. By actively developing their own homes, shared spaces
and amenities there has developed a strong sense of ownership, community,
and identity. The success and level of attachment to this settlement
clearly extends beyond its material presence and through the shared
experience of helping to cultivate a place of one’s own.
Description
Research Article
Keywords
housing schemes, Volta River Project, Ghana, Core Houses
Citation
Iain Jackson, Ola Uduku, Irene Appeaning Addo & Rexford Assasie Opong (2019) The Volta River Project: planning, housing and resettlement in Ghana, 1950–1965, The Journal of Architecture, 24:4, 512-548, DOI: 10.1080/13602365.2019.1643389