TY - JOUR
T1 - An assessment of households' perceptions of private security companies and crime in urban Ghana
AU - Owusu, George
AU - Owusu, Adobea Yaa
AU - Oteng-Ababio, Martin
AU - Wrigley-Asante, Charlotte
AU - Agyapong, Isaac
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 Owusu et al.
PY - 2016/12/1
Y1 - 2016/12/1
N2 - Amidst the growing incidence of urban crime in Ghana is the proliferation of private security companies (PSCs). As of December 2014, Ghana's Ministry of Interior, responsible for the registration and regulation of PSCs, reported that there were as many as 176 licensed companies in 'good standing' (that is, companies which have renewed their operating licenses) in the country. In broad terms, the proliferation of PSCs reflects a global trend and represents a logical extension of economic liberalization and privatization efforts of the Ghanaian state. The broad proposition in the security literature is that as the state cuts back on public services such as policing and security, the popular doctrine of resilience shifts the burden of security to society and consequently justifying the use of private security organizations. While PSCs have proliferated in recent decades, little studies have been done regarding their conformity with the existing policy, institutional and legal framework that set them up and the public perceptions about their activities and crime prevention in Ghanaian cities. More importantly, the extent to which PSCs have impacted on crime incidence and the public's perceptions on their operations and accessibility remain to be explored. Based on key informant interviews as well as a survey of 2745 households undertaken in key Ghanaian cities (Accra, Kumasi, Sekondi-Takoradi and Tamale), this study seeks to bridge these knowledge gaps by critically examining households' perceptions of PSCs and crime in large Ghanaian metropolitan cities. Quite contrary to the dominant propositions in the literature, the household survey identifies job creation/business as the single most important driver for the proliferation of PSCs.
AB - Amidst the growing incidence of urban crime in Ghana is the proliferation of private security companies (PSCs). As of December 2014, Ghana's Ministry of Interior, responsible for the registration and regulation of PSCs, reported that there were as many as 176 licensed companies in 'good standing' (that is, companies which have renewed their operating licenses) in the country. In broad terms, the proliferation of PSCs reflects a global trend and represents a logical extension of economic liberalization and privatization efforts of the Ghanaian state. The broad proposition in the security literature is that as the state cuts back on public services such as policing and security, the popular doctrine of resilience shifts the burden of security to society and consequently justifying the use of private security organizations. While PSCs have proliferated in recent decades, little studies have been done regarding their conformity with the existing policy, institutional and legal framework that set them up and the public perceptions about their activities and crime prevention in Ghanaian cities. More importantly, the extent to which PSCs have impacted on crime incidence and the public's perceptions on their operations and accessibility remain to be explored. Based on key informant interviews as well as a survey of 2745 households undertaken in key Ghanaian cities (Accra, Kumasi, Sekondi-Takoradi and Tamale), this study seeks to bridge these knowledge gaps by critically examining households' perceptions of PSCs and crime in large Ghanaian metropolitan cities. Quite contrary to the dominant propositions in the literature, the household survey identifies job creation/business as the single most important driver for the proliferation of PSCs.
KW - Accra
KW - Ghana
KW - Kumasi
KW - Private security companies
KW - Security privatization
KW - Sekondi-Takoradi
KW - Tamale
KW - Urban crime
KW - Urbanization
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84982748046&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1186/s40163-016-0053-x
DO - 10.1186/s40163-016-0053-x
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84982748046
SN - 2193-7680
VL - 5
JO - Crime Science
JF - Crime Science
IS - 1
M1 - 5
ER -