The National President of the Local Government Service Association of Physical Planners (LOGSAPP), Ambassador Gifty Nyarko, has issued an urgent call for stronger institutional support, sustained public investment, and strict enforcement of spatial planning to safeguard Ghanaian communities against disaster risks and climate hazards.

​Speaking at the opening of LOGSAPP’s 3rd Annual General Meeting and Conference held in Kumasi under the theme "Strengthening Spatial Planning for Disaster Risk Prevention, Reduction, Climate Change Resilience and Sustainable Infrastructure Delivery in Ghana," Ambassador Nyarko emphasised that sound spatial planning must be placed at the core of national policy and local governance.  

​"The location of a home, the protection of a waterway, the reservation of land for public infrastructure and the enforcement of a planning decision all have consequences for public safety," Ambassador Nyarko stated.

"When these responsibilities receive inadequate attention, communities carry the cost through avoidable losses, disrupted livelihoods and expensive corrective measures." 

​Addressing systemic challenges within the sector, the LOGSAPP President highlighted critical operational deficits across Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs). 

She urged the Local Government Service and relevant authorities to urgently address severe staffing shortfalls in Physical Planning Departments, allocate dedicated operational funding, and provide essential resources including modern surveying equipment, geospatial software, and transport for field inspections. 

​Nyarko further appealed for a coordinated national programme to procure and regularly update comprehensive base maps for all MMDAs. 

She noted that up-to-date base maps serve as the foundation for identifying disaster-prone areas, protecting environmentally sensitive land and guiding sustainable infrastructure development.

​While acknowledging public criticism of planners and engineers after local disasters, Ambassador Nyarko stressed that a fair assessment must evaluate whether technical advice was followed and whether adequate resources were provided. 

She called on traditional authorities, landowners, developers, and local communities to collaborate with planning authorities from the earliest stages of development to protect drainage corridors, green spaces, and public reservations.

​Turning to professional ethics, Ambassador Nyarko charged physical planners across the country to uphold the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and public service.

​"Our call for stronger institutions carries an equally serious obligation to uphold professional integrity," she said, adding that "we must provide honest technical advice, apply procedures fairly, safeguard confidential information and treat every client with courtesy and respect".

Adding his voice to the call for spatial planning reform, former Vice-Chancellor of Christian Service University, Prof. Samuel Afrane warned that disaster risk management in Ghana can no longer follow a "business as usual" approach.

​Addressing delegates at the conference, Prof. Afrane stressed that physical planners must adopt innovative, cutting-edge preventive strategies tailored separately to newly expanding areas and already established, built-up urban centres.

​"If you are talking about disaster management and you think that you are planning for a new area, you are making a mistake, because a good part of the city is already built," Prof. Afrane stated, noting that metropolitan areas like Kumasi span hundreds of square kilometres of established settlements. 

He added: "Our strategies and interventions must address both the old areas and the newly developing areas."

​For newly developing areas, Prof. Afrane proposed adopting risk-sensitive land use planning that strictly avoids floodplains, coastal erosion zones, steep slopes, and exposed green pits. 

He also called for the protection of natural ecosystems, the integration of nature-based urban management solutions, and the strict enforcement of building standards without exceptions. 

Prof. Afrane emphasised embedding disaster risk assessments directly into spatial plans and promoting sustainable infrastructure delivery to enhance community resilience.

​Acknowledging that disaster management in already developed areas is far more complex, Prof. Afrane recommended conducting detailed risk assessments in disaster-prone urban zones to feed into comprehensive local disaster management plans. 

He stressed that such plans must provide specific solutions for identified risks, actively involve key technical institutions including urban engineers, surveyors and utility providers, and feature costed interventions with dedicated budgetary allocations by MMDAs for effective implementation.