Assessing the level of compliance of telecommunication masts to locational planning standards towards harmonious and orderly city growth

ABSTRACT

The increasing demand for telecommunication services in Ghanaian cities has contributed to the expansion of the telecommunication with its associated health and safety concerns. To regulate the siting of masts towards orderliness, there exists several locational planning standards. There is however dearth of research on the extent of compliance by operators to the regulations with regards to the siting of telecommunication masts. Using Kumasi as a case study, data was gathered through observations and interviews with relevant institutions and households living within a 50 m radius of installed masts in three suburbs – low, middle and high-income neighborhoods. Findings of the research showed that there was a general non-compliance by telecommunication providers with the locational planning standards. For example, 90 percent of masts installed in the study communities do not comply with the minimum setback to the nearest building. The research further indicated that only 11 percent of residents interviewed from the three communities were consulted before the masts in their neighborhood were installed. There is the urgent need for city authorities to integrate telecommunication infrastructure into future land use plans. The study therefore calls for well-planned land use planning regime where the siting of telecommunication mast is done before physical development catches up with peri-urban neighborhoods.

KEYWORDS:

• Locational standard
• compliance
• neighborhood planning
• Ghana
• safety

This article is related to:

Research for city practice

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Emmanuel Amponsah

Emmanuel Amponsah holds a Master of Philosophy degree in Development Studies from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana. He is interested in urban poverty reduction, climate change and policy analysis.

Stephen Appiah Takyi

Stephen Appiah Takyi completed his Doctoral education at the School of Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, University of Northern British Columbia. Dr Takyi holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Planning specializing in Development Policy from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. He also holds a Master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario.

Michael Osei Asibey

Michael Osei Asibey holds a Master of Philosophy degree in Planning and a PhD in Planning from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Michael’s research interests include environmental planning and sustainability, climate change adaptation; urbanization and urban containment; green infrastructure planning and sustainable cities.

Owusu Amponsah

Owusu Amponsah holds a PhD in Planning with emphasis on policy analysis, a Master of Science degree in Development Policy and Planning, Postgraduate diploma in Land Management and Informal Settlements Regularization, Master of Science degree in Development Policy and Planning and Bachelor of Science degree in Planning. His research and professional experiences have been in the areas of policy analyses, urban poverty reduction, and informal settlements regularization.