Tema 1951-1962: the Evolution of a Planned City in West Africa

Abstract

This study traces the development of a modern planned city in tropical Africa, during its first twelve years of growth. The construction of an artificial harbour and town was undertaken after World War II in connexion with the Volta River Project, though it fulfilled a long-recognised need for a port in south-eastern Ghana. Tema, a typical coastal village, was selected in 1951 because of its favourable site characteristics and its nearness to Accra. Actual development of the new city was, however, beset by a variety of problems, e.g. the lack of a single authority to integrate the planning of the harbour area and the city proper, an uncertain commitment with regard to the growth of the industrial sector, the resistance of the original Tema villagers to a government scheme for their resettlement, and constant revisions in projections of optimum population size. The port of Tema was officially opened in 1962, and the city's future as an entrepot and industrial centre now seems assured.

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References

D.C. Robinson and R.J. Anderson , Report on the Development of the Town of Tema from 1951 to 1961, Tema, 1961.

D. Hilling , 'Tema: the Geography of a Port', Geography, 51 (1966), pp. 111-25.

This paper necessarily covers a period of colonial government in the Gold Coast and since 1957, that of the national government of Ghana. Therefore, both the former and present names will be used.

Sir Gordon Guggisberg , The Post-War Gold Coast: A Review of the Events of 1923 (Report based on Governor Guggisberg's Annual Address to the Legislative Council of the Gold Coast, 6th March 1924), p. 59.

The presence of bauxite had been known for many years, and some consideration had been given to the potential for bauxite mining even in the 1920's (Great Britain, Volta River Aluminium Scheme, Cmd. 8702, November 1952, p. 3). In an article published in 1925, one writer alluded to geological surveys reporting on the large deposits of manganese and bauxite. ( W.H. Barker , 'Trade Communications in Tropical Africa', Economic Geography, I (1925), P. 322.)

Volta River Aluminium Scheme (1952), p. 14. For a useful summary of the Volta River Project through 1956, see William A. Hance , African Economic Development , Harper, 1958, chap. 3.

Gold Coast, Development of the Volta River Basin, Accra : Government Printing Department, 1952, p. 4.

Report on Development of the River Volta Basin, 15 August 1951 , pp. 22-23, Sir W. Halcrow and Ptnrs., London, 1951.

Gold Coast, Ordinance No. 38 of 1952, 'The Tema Town and Port (Acquisition of Land) Ordinance', p. i.

10.

Gold Coast, Ordinance No. 35 of 1952.

11.

Gold Coast, Ordinance No. 38 of 1952, Sect. 4.

12.

A.E.S. Alcock , 'A New Town in the Gold Coast', Town and Country Planning, 23 ( 1955), P. 52.

13.

Initial Proposals for the Development of the New Town of Tema by the Town Planning Adviser (Tema, 1952), p. 4.

14.

Alcock , p. 53.

15.

Alcock , p. 53.

16.

For a detailed study of the resettlement of the occupants of the village at Tema, the reader is referred to Tema Manhean: A Study of Resettlement by G.W. Amarteifio , D.A.P. Butcher , and David Whitham , London: Oxford University Press, 1966.

17.

Tema: Ghana's New Town and Harbour, Accra : Ministry of Information, 1961, p. 6. An even more romanticised description of the fishing village appeared in a government publication: 'For the area of the harbour was once a traditional fishing bay from where gallant fishermen braved the restless tropical surfs of the Gulf of Guinea in their surf boats to catch fish for their wives and children and their aged mothers.' 'Operation Tema', Ghana Today, 7 (28th August 1963), p. 5.

18.

An Appreciation of the Problems Involved in the Planning and Development of the New Town of Tema with Some Recommendations of the Town Planning Advisor, Accra: Government Printing Office, December 1952, p. 67.

19.

ibid., Appendix E. At the time it was thought that the lagoon should be filled in as it was regarded as inconsequential as a fishing ground and a possible health menace.

20.

Henry J. Kaiser Co. , Reassessment Report on the Volta River Project for the Government of Ghana, Report No. HC 59-i-RE, February 1959. T. E. Hilton has recently reviewed the status of the Volta River Project, 'Akosombo Dam and the Volta River Project', Geography, 51 (July 1966), pp. 251-4.

21.

Accra-A Plan for the Town: The Report for the Minister of Housing , Accra: Town and Country Planning Division, 1958, p. 4.

22.

Initial Proposals for the Development of the New Town of Tema by the Town Planning Adviser, Tema, 1952, p. 2.

23.

ibid, p. 2.

24.

Robinson and Anderson , Sect. 1.1, 'Background . 1951-1954'.

25.

Robinson and Anderson , Sect. 1.3.11 .

26.

Robinson and Anderson , Sect. 2.4.17 .

27.

Doxiadis Associates , Tema: Master Programme and Plan, Preliminary Report 4, Document DOX-GHA 18; Athens, 1961, p. 6.