Rent prices have been one of the major problems residents in Accra face in the city every year.
The prices of rent which keep increasing over the past few years have rendered some of the residents homeless on the streets of Accra because they cannot afford to rent a house to lay their heads after a hard day’s work.
One of the important and basic necessities for humans is a place to lay their heads and a place which will be of shelter to them and their families but this has now become one of the major problems that is facing them in the country.
The provision of affordable housing for most of the citizens in the country remains a close book that the government has been struggling to solve.
According to Modern Ghana, “Since 2010, Ghana has been tagged as experiencing a housing deficit of 1.7 million units. However, present trends show that the probable increase in deficit may not be because of an increase in population but due to the inability of citizens to afford houses. About 1.5 million low-income households need affordable housing solutions in Ghana with about 12.4 Million Ghanaians living in slums(UN-HABITAT)”.
Residents in Accra are those who are seen to be severely affected by the high cost of rent.
Some of the residents who fall victim to this problem are seen sleeping in front of closed stores in the evening especially the “kayayes”, the women and young ladies from the Northern part of Ghana who come to the cities to seek greener pastures. These people make the stores their homes at night to lay their heads. These people are mostly seen in Accra Newtown, Adabraka, Circle and Agbogbloshie. Others who have friends and relatives who have houses, move in with them because they cannot afford to pay house rents.
Mr Godsway Dogbe, a house agent and tenant who has spent 15 years in Accra Newtown working as a house agent, laments how rent prices have risen from 2021 to 2022 and how it has affected his work as an agent and a tenant.
“When it comes to rent prices in Accra Newtown, I may say it is becoming outrageous. Last year, 2021, we used to rent the normal single room for 100 cedis. But this year, the same single room is going for 150- 200.
For single room self-contained, last year’s price was 250 cedis but this year, the price has increased to 300 – 350 cedis.
This year, the people who have rented houses are very few because they cannot afford the rent price and this price and that is affecting my business as well because the more people rent the house, the more I also earn based on the percentage given to me by the house owners”.
Edinam Yayra Doe, a worker and a resident in Adabraka also shared his concern about the situation.
“I teach in CJ school at Accra Newtown and I earn 1000 cedis a month. I cannot afford to pay the rent price in Accra because it is very expensive. I have one son who is currently staying with his mother at Amasaman because I can’t afford to rent a house. When I pay his fees and give her mother money for food and other utilities, I’m left with very little to take me through the remaining days in the month before my next salary. I am currently staying with a friend in Adabraka. I hope the government comes to our rescue because this situation is a disgrace to my family”.
If the rent prices keep rising to a point, the middle-income groups will find it difficult to get a place to lay their heads and more people will be seen homeless on the streets of the capital city.
BY: ATTIPOE AKORFA – BACS 23357
Ghana Institute of Journalism
attipoeakorfa@gmail.com
