Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly Research Articles

An Overview of the Obstacles to Gender Equality Processes in Rural and Urban Ghana: A Comparative Analysis

The differential impact of development efforts on women and men has critically brought out the need to take a gender-transformative approach to development processes. Despite the tremendous efforts made, there persist some seemingly impossible obstacles to gender equality. The main objective of this study was to analyze the main obstacles to gender equality in Ghana in rural and urban contexts to inform policy decisions. The study employed a mixed-method approach involving the administration of 400 questionnaires to targeted households together with in-depth interviews and focus group discussions conducted in the Ejisu Juabeng Municipality and Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly. A key finding of the study is that while the impact of religion on gender equality was similarly felt in rural and urban areas, the impact of culture, illiteracy, family ties, and residential orientation were more pronounced in rural areas. Gender equality efforts and interventions must therefore not only be gender-transformative, but location-sensitive.

Assessing the Customer Behaviour in Relation to Electronic Payment Systems (EPS) in Some Ghanaian Banks in the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly- Kumasi, Ghana

Although other payment methods are available, like card, cheque, mobile, and online payments, most Ghanaians still use the cash payment system. The study examined how Ghanaian customers felt about using electronic payments. These included determining thesector andctors that influence consumer adoption and use of electronic payment services in Ghanaian banks, examining customer satisfaction with e-payment in the banking sector, and preventing fraud. A sample size of 100 participants was chosen for the study using purposive sampling to select participants from the banks and systematic sampling to select participants from the customers. According to the research’s findings, factors such as usability, security, privacy, the caliber of the after-sales support, marketing mix, and reputation affect consumers’ opinions of electronic payment systems. According to the study, customers are satisfied with the value offered for their banking requirements and the opportunity to experiment with e-payments in the banking sector. The study also found that while customers’ top concerns are trust and security, barriers to e-commerce include a low internet penetration rate, fewer users, expensive and challenging e-commerce technology, and a lack of progress in other supporting industries. Trust and security are significant deterrents against using electronic payment systems. The ability of consumers and banks to reach a larger market and participate in the world payment system is another way that technology can help the economy. Stakeholders should offer the unbanked sufficient assurances of security for utilizing electronic payment systems on their privacy without requiring them to maintain accounts with them. Keywords: Electronic Payment Systems (EPS), Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA)Payment Portal Services (PPS), Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), and Central Business District (CBD).

Reducing the Risk of Fire Outbreak in Compliance with Fire Safety Regulations in Ghana

Fire outbreak is a disturbing phenomenon that has over the years destroyed market centers. There is growing knowledge that the persistence of these fire disasters is as a result of people’s noncompliance with fire safety regulations. This study therefore contributes to the search for solutions by assessing stakeholders’ capacity to manage fires, While creating the individual trader’s awareness and knowledge on what they need to do against fire risk and disasters. The study is cross-sectional and involved 140 traders and three institutions: National Disaster Management Organization, Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and Ghana National Fire Service. A systematic sampling technique was used in selecting 140 respondents from a total of 386 with the help of the Sloving technique. The study revealed that traders in the Kumasi Central Market were unaware of what they need to do in case of fire outbreak. It was also shown that, both traders and firefighting institutions do not comply with the safety measures to preventing fire outbreaks. Again it was revealed that haphazard development within the city center serves as a major hindrance for effective fire prevention and control. Based on findings, the study recommends intensive education of traders on how to prevent fire and how to use firefighting tools in case of fire disasters. The study further recommends the review and enforcement of fire prevention codes and regulations to ensure compliance by traders. Keywords: Fire, Safety, Safety measures Risk, Firefighting, Fire training DOI: 10.7176/JEP/14-13-07 Publication date: May 31 st 2023

Land Cover Changes Utilising Landsat Satellite Imageries for the Kumasi Metropolis and Its Adjoining Municipalities in Ghana (1986-2022).

Forest loss, unbridled urbanisation, and the loss of arable lands have become contentious issues for the sustainable management of land. Landsat satellite images for 1986, 2003, 2013, and 2022, covering the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and its adjoining municipalities, were used to analyse the Land Use Land Cover (LULC) changes. The machine learning algorithm, Support Vector Machine (SVM), was used for the satellite image classification that led to the generation of the LULC maps. The Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalised Difference Built-up Index (NDBI) were analysed to assess the correlations between the indices. The image overlays of the forest and urban extents and the calculation of the annual deforestation rates were evaluated. The study revealed decreasing trends in forestlands, increased urban/built-up areas (similar to the image overlays), and a decline in agricultural lands. However, there was a negative relationship between the NDVI and NDBI. The results corroborate the pressing need for the assessment of LULC utilising satellite sensors. This paper contributes to the existing outlines for evolving land design for the promotion of sustainable land use.

Investigating Challenges of Mobile Money usage in the Central Business District of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Adum- Ghana

A descriptive cross-sectional design approach was deployed using a structured questionnaire underpinning the research objective to collect data from mobile money users and non-users within the Business District Centre of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Adum. The purposive random selection technique was used to choose a sample size of 59. This study seeks to investigate the challenges encountered by patrons of mobile money and examine their behaviour and attitudes towards the usage of mobile money transactions. The study identified seven (7) challenges, namely, financial, security, privacy, performance, time, convenience, and psychological, with performance, security, and privacy challenges being the most prevalent. The low transaction limits due to inadequate constant liquidity flow (cash and e-float) by agents affect consumers who wish to transact more than being offered; unwarranted delays experienced by customers and merchants due to incomplete payment process are some of the causative challenges of mobile money transaction; and invasion of privacy and defamation are among major. Fraudsters use the fear and anxiety of customers’ personal details in the hands of a third party, especially when the mobile money accounts are linked to clients’ bank accounts. The effect of inconvenience and delays in transactions are pointers to a duplicated transaction. It is recommended that service charges be lowered to their minimum rates, ensure a reliable mobile money system for consumers through system upgrades, and service providers ensure that personal details remain private to avoid consumer-driven fraud by inadvertently making pin codes known to third parties. Keywords: Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA), Mobile Money, Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and the Diffusion of Innovation Theory.

Assessment of Past and Future Land Use/Land Cover Dynamics of the Old Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and Atwima Nwabiagya Municipal Area, Ghana

Ghana like all countries in Sub-Saharan region of Africa have long been undergoing intense land use land cover changes (LULCC) which have given rise to extensive forest loss (deforestation and degradation), loss of arable land and land degradation. This study assessed the past LULCC in the Atwima Nwabiagya which contains the Barekese and Owabi Headworks) and the old Kumasi Local Assemblies’ areas in Ghana and projected the scenario in 2040 for business-as-usual (BAU). The synergies of satellite imagery of 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020 were classified with an overall accuracy of 90%. Markov Cellular-Automata method was used to forecast the future LULC pattern after detecting main driving forces of LULCC. The findings showed an extensive increase in built up areas from 11% in 1990 to 39% in 2020 owing largely to 23% decrease in forest cover and 6% decrease in agricultural lands within the past 30 years (1990-2020). The projected LULC under the BAU scenario for 2040 showed built-up surge from 39% to 45% indicating additional forest loss from 43% in 2020 to 40% and decreasing agricultural land from 17% to 14%. The main driver for the LULCC is clearly anthropogenic driven as the human population in the study area keeps rising every censual year. This study exemplifies the fast-tracked forest loss, loss of arable land and challenges on ecosystem sustainability of the Barekese-Owabi-Kumasi landscape. The current and projected maps necessitate the apt implementation of suitable interventions such as reforestation, protection measures and policy decision in deliberate land use planning to mitigate further loss of forest cover and safeguard the Barekese and Owabi headworks.

THE ROLE OF EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT ON ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE AND THE INTENTION TO STAY

The study attempted to examine critically the influence of employee commitment on organizational performance and intention to stay at Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), Kumasi – Ghana. A quantitative research methodology was employed in this study where two hundred and eleven (211) respondents were selected for the study using random sampling. The population consists of civil servants and other categories of work at Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly in Ghana. The questionnaires were distributed to respondents for data collection. Data were analyzed using SPSS. The study found that affective commitment and normative commitment significantly influence organizational performance. The study further found that affective commitment and normative commitment and continuance commitment significantly employees’ intention to stay. In practice, the management of KMA needs to take effective initiatives to increase employee commitment to the organization. Management can provide employees with training, and career development programs and increase their compensational packages. This will influence employees to remain loyal to the organization. This will also reduce employee turnover and intentions to stay in the organization. Also, the study recommends that the Management of KMA and other institutions alike should create value for the work activities and duties carried out by each employee in the organization. Creating value by recognizing individual efforts and rewarding positive behaviors will cause the employees to remain members of the organization because of the perception that they cannot secure better job opportunities elsewhere.

Shadow men: The third wheel of public transport in Ghana

ABSTRACT The literature on urban transport in Ghana focus exclusively on the state of buses, drivers and transport unions, much to the neglect of a group of workers referred to as “shadow men.” Their function is to help fill these buses with passengers. This paper explores the activities of these shadow men, their origin, and their contributions to the growth of urban transport. The researchers selected a total of 47 respondents for the study. The researchers conducted interviews with the Head of Department of Urban Transport of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly and the Head of Ghana Private Road Transport Union, and then purposely selected 25 of these shadow men, 4 trotro drivers, 6 trotro mates, and 10 passengers in Kumasi, Ghana’s second largest city. In addition to these interviews, the researchers held two focus group discussions that involved drivers and drivers’ mates (conductors) in one group, and passengers in another group. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. The research found that there are two broad categories of shadow men: those engaged in it as a full-time business, and out-of-work drivers and drivers’ mates who rely on it for income until they have a new bus to work with. The findings also underscore the lucrative nature of the work and the city authorities’ indifference to the shadow men. Shadow men are essential to the urban transport sector in Ghana and should therefore be given considerable attention by academics, and included in the plans of city authorities.

Accounting Records Keeping and Growth of Small and Medium Enterprises in Kumasi Metropolitan

Small and medium enterprises constitute about 90% of the Ghanaian economy. This study explored accounting records keeping and growth of small and medium enterprises in Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly. The target population of the study was the owners or managers of small businesses in Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly. This study adopted a descriptive survey research approach. The study used stratified random sampling methods to sample the respondents. The study considered a total sample size of 200 small business operators and an interview with 1 personnel in NBSSI in Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly. It was found out that the most SME operators in Kumasi Metropolitan keep the following books altogether; sales book, purchases book, cash book and employees payroll. The research revealed that some businesses in the Metropolitan do not keep accounting records because they do not see the need (33.3%) and at the same time they want to keep secrets of their business from their competitors (28.6%). Also, some cited accounting system being expensive to operate and, some SME operators stated lack of the requisite accounting skills. In addition, the findings showed that accurate accounting record keeping of SMEs transactions is essential to the growth of the enterprises in determining their profit/loss level, acquiring credit facilities from banks, ability to have some document to back up their tax records and able to make efficient financial decisions of their business. The challenges of keeping of accurate records were highly blamed on cost constraints (58.2%), difficulty in maintaining the system (21.5%) and non-availability of skills personnel (8.2%). Following this, the study recommended that the appropriate authorities in the metropolitan concerned should come up with an efficient program for training the SMEs owners or managers. Additionally, the research recommends that a policy be made to make it mandatory for the SMEs owners or managers to keep records of their business transactions.

Passenger counting in minivan-taxis using crowd-sourcing and hierarchical clustering

A novel method for estimating the passenger densities of minivan taxis popularly known as Trotros in Ghana is proposed. A smartphone is used to collect time, location and velocity data from groups of passengers travelling in parts of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Ghana. Passengers are clustered by four different combinations of their location, time and average acceleration data using the agglomerative hierarchical clustering algorithm. A classification method was then used to externally validate the results by comparing the cluster labels to an initial class labelling which had been assigned during data collection called the group code. The count of the group code represented the estimated number of passengers aboard the vehicle. Results from the various clustering combinations performed indicated that using the time and location variables only for classification gave the highest accuracy of about 89.2% as compared to the other combinations. The proposed method of counting passengers in moving vehicles is particularly useful in the Ghanaian context due to the fact that trotros do not have to be retro-fitted with expensive devices for data collection and thus can be implemented without financially burdening the privately-owned trotro industry. Also, counting passengers in trotros adds to the growing pool of trotro research data which is beneficial for improvements in the trotro industry and also for future research.

Perception of Beneficiaries and Stakeholders About Vocational Education in Ghana: A Case Study in Ashanti Region, Ghana

Background: Technical and Vocational Education is considered by many nations as an important catalyst in the development of a country, however much investment and research have not been done to enriching vocational education. This study therefore, delve into the perception and factors that influence beneficiaries in acquiring vocational education, and the impact of vocational education on vocational graduates and also to assess the factors the inhibit the full actualization of skills acquired from vocational education. Methods: In pursuit of the stated objective descriptive cross-sectional survey was adopted as the research design for this study. Data was sourced from both primary and secondary sources. Structured questionnaire which was the main research instrument was used to elicit information from the participants consisting beneficiaries and stakeholders from Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Results: The findings showed an R 2 value of 0.874 which reveals that, the factors influence the choice of vocational education by beneficiaries accounted for 0.0874% of the variation in a choice vocational education. The f-statistics of 86.922 reveals that the model is statistically significant at 0.05 significant level. On the impact of vocational education on the beneficiaries’ occupation, majority of them agreed to the fact that vocational education gave them the necessary technical and entrepreneurial skills. The beneficiaries however have a negative perception about vocation education while stakeholders hold a contrary perception. Conclusion: Vocational education plays a critical role in development hence governments must prioritise vocational education development. However, developing vocational education requires a complete understanding of the factors that affect vocational education development; hence a broader study should be conducted to identify these factors. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/11-5-01 Publication date: February 29 th 2020

Exploring Low E-Participation in Policy Making in Ghana: A Case Study of Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly

The way people interact and collaborate with others in this modern society in terms of business and governance has seen drastic modification. Previously, demographic difference and distances of geographic locations always distance and separated citizen from the government. Fortunately, the emergence of Information Communication Technology (ICT) which has provided online platforms have helped bridged this gap. This study employed explanatory research design coupled with cross sectional and convenient sampling techniques to select a sample size of 219 respondents for the study. Primary and secondary data were used for the research. The study also employed the ordinary least squares multiple regression econometric model in estimating the impact of factors that influence E-participation in policy making of local government in Ghana Finally, the study concluded that trust factors have a negative influence on electronic participation in policy making of local government in Ghana and is not statistically significant whereas social factors such as culture and gender inequalities have a positive impact E-participation in policy making of local government in Ghana. Technical factors consisting of technological infrastructure and information technology literacy also has a positive impact on E-participation in policy making of local government in Ghana. Keywords: Electronic Participation (E-Participation), Policy Making, Local Government, Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly DOI : 10.7176/RHSS/10-2-01 Publication date: January 31 st 2020

Tax Relief Awareness: Its Financial Consequences to Non-Filers in Ghana.

Every government urges its citizenry to pay tax, but its payment places some sort of burden on the taxpayer. In order to lessen the burden of the taxpayer, some reliefs are granted by the government. The study sought to ascertain how tax reliefs influence the payment of tax. The needed data was obtained through the use of questionnaires and interviews. A total of 150 questionnaires were administered to the staff workers in Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, and some of the student workers in Christ Apostolic University College. Out of this, one hundred and forty-two responded indicating response rate of 95%. Hypotheses were set to test each of the research objectives. All the hypotheses were supported even though the main challenge faced by tax filers is the long delay in the payment of returns. Based on the findings, it is recommended that computerized tax filing system should be implemented so that every Ghanaian can file the returns online to reduce the delays caused by paper filing.

Willingness to Pay for Improved Solid Waste Collection and Its Implication on Business Orientation Practices of Local Governments in Ghana

Once upon a time it was believed that poor sanitation conditions in the Kumasi Central Business Districts were as a result of consumers’ unwillingness to pay for improved solid waste collection. This study sought to investigate consumers’ willingness to pay for improved solid waste collection and the implications it would have on the business orientation practices of local governments in Ghana. This is crucial as the local governments are burdened with increasing sanitation problems, sanitation has become a yardstick for measuring government’s performance and citizens’ demand for improved sanitation is influencing party politics. The study adopted an institutional assessment procedure developed by Cullivan et al . This procedure allowed the use of a mixed-method approach with questionnaire and interview as instruments for gathering data. In all 100 consumers in central business district and 30 experts from service providers including the Waste Management Department, Environmental Health Unit, Zoomlion Ghana Limited, and Freko FD Limited participated in the study. The study showed that contrary to popular believe, consumers were willing to pay for improved sanitation and that poor solid was disposal thrived on institutional ineffectiveness. It was recommended that the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly must improve on its service delivery by recruiting more people into the sector and demonstrate to consumers the Assembly’s readiness to deliver on waste collection, as well as provide adequate dustbins at vintage points as parts of its commitment to improve on solid waste collection and ensure that consumers become responsible in making use of the facilities.

The Challenge of Reducing the Incidence of Building Collapse in Ghana: Analyzing the Perspectives of Building Inspectors in Kumasi

A study of the dynamics of building collapse in Ghana is lacking, notwithstanding the fact that several buildings have collapsed in recent times. This study analyzes the supervisory role and challenges of building inspectors in Kumasi to assess Ghana’s progress toward minimal or zero incidence of building collapse. It adopts the stratified random sampling technique to select 27 out of 35 building inspectors of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), and a semistructured interview guide to gather data from same. Data gathered were presented and analyzed through tables and direct quotations. Findings revealed that, despite the legal requirement of notification by the developer, building inspectors are compelled to visit building sites to check on developers who may have begun development without notifying them. Many developers violate the legal provisions because of ignorance, delays in acquiring building permits, and the burden of transporting building inspectors at all stages of construction. Notably, building inspectors in Kumasi have not been able to control the rate of building collapse because of constraints such as inadequate logistics and manpower, and excessive political interference. In the current climate, the built environment will continue to pose a threat to human life and property investment. Although unpleasant to contemplate, the study concludes that Ghana may witness more building collapses in the near future, if the aforesaid challenges are not addressed. To avert this, it is recommended that building inspectors in Kumasi and Ghana be equipped and empowered by the state.

Implementation and process analysis of pilot scale multi-phase anaerobic fermentation and digestion of faecal sludge in Ghana

Background. In Ghana, faecal sludge (FS) from on-site sanitation facilities is often discharged untreated into the environment, leading to significant insults to environmental and human health. Anaerobic digestion offers an attractive pathway for FS treatment with the concomitant production of energy in the form of methane. Another innovative option includes separating digestion into acidogenesis (production of volatile fatty acids (VFA)) and methanogenesis (production of methane), which could ultimately facilitate the production of an array of biofuels and biochemicals from the VFA. This work describes the development, implementation and modeling based analysis of a novel multiphase anaerobic fermentation-digestion process aimed at FS treatment in Kumasi, Ghana. Methods. A pilot-scale anaerobic fermentation process was implemented at the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly’s Oti Sanitary Landfill Site at Adanse Dompoase. The process consisted of six 10 m 3 reactors in series, which were inoculated with bovine rumen and fed with fecal sludge obtained from public toilets. The performance of the fermentation process was characterized in terms of both aqueous and gaseous variables representing the conversion of influent organic carbon to VFA as well as CH 4. Using the operating data, the first-ever process model for FS fermentation and digestion was developed and calibrated, based on the activated sludge model framework. Results and Conclusions. This work represents one of the first systematic efforts at integrated FS characterization and process modeling to enable anaerobic fermentation and digestion of FS. It is shown that owing to pre-fermentation of FS in public septage holding tanks, one could employ significantly smaller digesters (lower capital costs) or increased loading capabilities for FS conversion to biogas or VFA. Further, using the first-ever calibrated process model for FS fermentation and digestion presented herein, we expect improved and more mechanistically informed development and application of different process designs and configurations for global FS management practice.

Implementation and process analysis of pilot scale multi-phase anaerobic fermentation and digestion of faecal sludge in Ghana.

Background. In Ghana, faecal sludge (FS) from on-site sanitation facilities is often discharged untreated into the environment, leading to significant insults to environmental and human health. Anaerobic digestion offers an attractive pathway for FS treatment with the concomitant production of energy in the form of methane. Another innovative option includes separating digestion into acidogenesis (production of volatile fatty acids (VFA)) and methanogenesis (production of methane), which could ultimately facilitate the production of an array of biofuels and biochemicals from the VFA. This work describes the development, implementation and modeling based analysis of a novel multiphase anaerobic fermentation-digestion process aimed at FS treatment in Kumasi, Ghana. Methods. A pilot-scale anaerobic fermentation process was implemented at the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly's Oti Sanitary Landfill Site at Adanse Dompoase. The process consisted of six 10 m reactors in series, which were inoculated with bovine rumen and fed with fecal sludge obtained from public toilets. The performance of the fermentation process was characterized in terms of both aqueous and gaseous variables representing the conversion of influent organic carbon to VFA as well as CH 4. Using the operating data, the first-ever process model for FS fermentation and digestion was developed and calibrated, based on the activated sludge model framework. Results and Conclusions. This work represents one of the first systematic efforts at integrated FS characterization and process modeling to enable anaerobic fermentation and digestion of FS. It is shown that owing to pre-fermentation of FS in public septage holding tanks, one could employ significantly smaller digesters (lower capital costs) or increased loading capabilities for FS conversion to biogas or VFA. Further, using the first-ever calibrated process model for FS fermentation and digestion presented herein, we expect improved and more mechanistically informed development and application of different process designs and configurations for global FS management practice.

Managing cities and resolving conflicts: Local people’s attitudes towards urban planning in Kumasi, Ghana

This study explores local people’s attitudes towards urban planning, and the effects of development benefits on local support for planning in Kumasi, Ghana. Kumasi is a rapidly urbanising city in Ghana where urban growth between 2000 and 2010 exceeded 5%, and where local support for urban planning has not been studied adequately. Based on Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Town and Country Planning Department and Ghana Statistical Service’s residential area classifications, household survey with 360 respondents were conducted in nine high, middle and low class neighbourhoods in Kumasi, in addition to interviews with six representatives from two planning agencies. Results indicated that two-thirds of the household respondents were positive towards urban planning and support urban planning. The household respondents were aware that more development benefits are possible from an inclusive and pro-poor urban planning. There appears to be correlation between development benefits obtained by local people from urban planning, and support for urban planning, indicating that development benefits impact people’s attitudes towards urban planning. Some of the main problems are social and spatial inequity among people living in different classes of residential neighbourhoods, and lack of locals’ inclusion in urban planning and management. There is a need to clearly address these issues, so that urban planning may get the support of local people which may lead to sustainable urban development.

Forecasting solid waste generation: a Fourier series approach

Successful planning of a solid waste management system depends on the accuracy of prediction of solid waste generation. With a continual economic development and increase in the living standards, the demand for goods and services is increasing at an unprecedented rate, resulting in a commensurate increase in per capita waste generation. In order to facilitate informed decision making for an effective solid waste management, we propose a Fourier Series Model to forecast solid waste generation in Kumasi, Ghana. A monthly waste data from 2007 to 2014 was obtained from the solid waste department of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Ghana. This was used to formulate the Fourier series model for forecasting solid waste. This novel application incorporates the characteristics of the data making them it appropriate for forecasting solid waste. MAPE and RMSE comparison of our proposed model with existing method for forecasting solid waste shows that our method competes favourably well.

Integration of biodiversity in urban planning instruments in developing countries: the case of Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Ghana

There is a growing concern about integrating biodiversity into urban planning, yet, discussions are concentrated on science-informed planning in general. Few have explored the integration of biodiversity in specific planning instruments, especially in African cities. This paper examines how and what components of biodiversity are integrated into master plans, medium-term plans, building codes, zoning codes and permits in Kumasi City, Ghana. There is limited integration of biodiversity in most planning instruments as they were mostly designed on the basis of health, safety and economy. Allied to lack of funding and public participation, biodiversity in Kumasi is under significant threat from rapid urban development. Creating an opportunity for popular participation and decentralizing the planning system could set the preconditions for local integration and revision of instruments. Simplifying the definition of biodiversity could increase local planners’ appreciation, understanding and their ability to make use of biodiversity data.