IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/agspub/v14y2025i4p451-475.html

Resistance Against the World Bank-funded Kwabenya Landfill Project in Accra: The Battle of the Agyemankata Community for Environmental Justice and Against Eviction

Author

Listed:
  • Aram Ziai
  • Joshua Kwesi Aikins

Abstract

The article reconstructs the successful struggle of the Agyemankata community against the Kwabenya landfill project in Accra, Ghana, which lasted from 2001 to 2010. Situating itself in the literature on displacement, it asks which factors led to this success. Investigating the correspondence and newspaper articles regarding the resistance, we conclude that the main factors include an uncompromising stance against relocation and compensation coupled with a principled refusal to be coopted; an active media and communication strategy focused on the rule of law, democracy, human rights, and environmental protection; and the support of independent experts. The article further argues that the authorities made mistakes that played into the protesters’ hands.

Suggested Citation

  • Aram Ziai & Joshua Kwesi Aikins, 2025. "Resistance Against the World Bank-funded Kwabenya Landfill Project in Accra: The Battle of the Agyemankata Community for Environmental Justice and Against Eviction," Agrarian South: Journal of Political Economy, Centre for Agrarian Research and Education for South, vol. 14(4), pages 451-475, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:agspub:v:14:y:2025:i:4:p:451-475
    DOI: 10.1177/22779760251388199
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/22779760251388199
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/22779760251388199?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Miles Larmer, 2010. "Social movement struggles in Africa," Review of African Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(125), pages 251-262, September.
    2. Ranjit Dwivedi, 2002. "Models and Methods in Development–Induced Displacement (Review Article)," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 33(4), pages 709-732, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sudhanshu K. MISHRA, 2017. "Measuring degree of globalization of African Countries on almost equimarginal contribution principle," Journal of Economics Bibliography, KSP Journals, vol. 4(4), pages 345-353, December.
    2. Yideg Alemu & Degefa Tolossa, 2022. "Consultation and Displacement in Large-Scale Agriculture Investment: Evidence from Oromia Region’s Shashamane Rural District," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-23, August.
    3. Adugbila, Emmanuel Junior & Todorovski, Dimo & Pfeffer, Karin & Zevenbergen, Jaap, 2025. "Perceptions of people in host communities on the implementation of dam-induced involuntary resettlement programme in the Global South: The case of Bui Dam in Ghana," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    4. Youliang Huang & Wensheng Lin & Shan Li & Yan Ning, 2018. "Social Impacts of Dam-Induced Displacement and Resettlement: A Comparative Case Study in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-18, November.
    5. Lyttleton, Chris, 2020. "Borderline well-being: Mental health in a development zone," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 245(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:agspub:v:14:y:2025:i:4:p:451-475. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.