Rethinking the implications of sprawl to building sustainable secondary cities; case of Tamale, Ghana

Abstract

ABSTRACT There are two major debates on the discussion of urban sprawl; those who maintain that it has positive implications on development and sustainability of cities and those who are otherwise. This study contributes to this intellectual debate by examining both sides of the phenomenon in a single investigation, based on the perspectives of urbanites of a secondary city. The mixed-methods research approach was adopted for the inquiry. Using Tamale Metropolis as a case, primary data were collected from 386 household respondents and three agencies for the cross-sectional survey and key informant interviews, respectively. The results revealed that urbanisation is rapid with a correspondingly high rate of sprawl. The majority of the respondents (98%) reported an increased urban concentration in the area over the past decade. There has been a 60.7% increase in population increase between 2010 and 2021. Land cover analysis revealed that in 2010, approximately 9% of the total land area of the metropolis was built up, attributed to increasing population and corresponding increased demand for land for development. This increased to 16% and 26% in 2016 and 2022, respectively. The sprawling phenomenon was largely associated with rapid population growth, economic growth, availability of automobiles, improvement in road infrastructure and family nuclearisation. Though the study unravelled some benefits associated with sprawl, Tamale is still not an exception in terms of the documented adverse implications of sprawl. Relevant recommendations were thus made for capitalising on the positive impacts of sprawl while mitigating the associated challenges.