Stakeholder priorities and navigating barriers in urban river restoration: Comparative insights from Germany and Ghana

Abstract

Urban river restoration is a key nature-based solution (NbS) for flood mitigation, climate resilience and urban liveability. While developed countries are assumed to prioritise ecological enhancement and recreation and developing countries focus on risk mitigation and socio-economic development, empirical validation remains limited. This study addresses these gaps through a comparative analysis of the Isar River in Munich, Germany and the Aboabo River in Kumasi, Ghana. Using participatory workshops with SWOT analysis and Kruskal-Wallis testing, we examined how stakeholder priorities differ and how contextual factors enable or constrain the implementation and scaling of urban river restorations. Findings reveal shared challenges, including land tenure complexities, financial constraints and governance hurdles. However, Munich stakeholders emphasise biodiversity and water quality, reflecting advanced ecological objectives, while Kumasi stakeholders prioritise flood risk mitigation and project feasibility, given the city's vulnerability and early-stage restoration efforts. These differences partly confirm common assumptions but also highlight the influence of NbS implementation stages. Early-phase projects, like Kumasi's, focus on risk reduction, whereas mature projects, like Munich's, shift toward ecological enhancement and recreation. Recreation was also highly valued in Kumasi and less so in Munich and suggests broader stakeholder priorities in developing contexts. Cultural heritage and climate adaptation were underrepresented in both cases and signal gaps in existing frameworks. We recommend that developed countries integrate climate resilience and cost efficiency, while developing countries align restoration with socio-economic needs, strengthen institutional capacity and embed projects into broader urban planning frameworks. A phased, coordinated approach may offer a viable pathway for long-term success.