The National Population Council is worried over the increase in the population density of some regions in the country following new census figures released by the Ghana Statistical Service.
Data from the 2021 Population and Housing Census (PHC) indicates that the density of the most populous region; Greater Accra has increased from 430 per square kilometre in 2010 to 1, 678 per square kilometres in 2021.
In this regard, the Council’s main concern is the possible outbreak of communicable diseases, which it says may be disastrous for inhabitants because of the high numbers.
Executive Director of the National Population Council, Dr. Leticia Appiah, in a Citi News interview, warned of the effects of overcrowding.
“In very high population-dense areas, if there is an outbreak of a communicable disease, it spreads like bush fires. Also, you can also have them degrading the environment in these high population-dense areas. So the population density is good, but there is a certain point beyond which it hurts you. The population density will help you to a point to improve living conditions but if you don’t control it, and it tips, then it gets to overcrowding which does not support any quality of life.”
Ghana’s population is now 30.8 million, according to provisional results from the 2021 Population and Housing Census.
Between 2010 and 2021, 6.1 million persons have been born, increasing the population from 24.7 million to the current 30.8 million.
The Greater Accra and Ashanti Regions both have a population size of 5.4 million each, while the Ahafo Region, the least populous region, has a total population of 600,000.
Out of the 10.7 million structures counted, about 20% of them were metal containers, kiosks, and wooden structures.
Other findings?
Overall, women make up 50.7% of the population, while men make up 49.3%.
Also, the ratio of 97 men for 100 women in 2021, represented a slight increase over the ratio of 95 recorded in 2010.
The 1960 census is the only post-independence census that recorded more men than women (102 men to 100 women).
Since then, sex ratios have declined until the uptick observed in 2021.
Regional gender ratios in the 2021 PHC range from 91 men for every 100 women in the Volta Region, to 105 men for every 100 women in the Western North Region.
Greater Accra has also overtaken the Ashanti as the most populous region in the latest census.
In all, 8,345,414 households were enumerated, with an average household size of 3.6 persons.
