urbanisation

Summary of an event with Dr Beacon Mbiba, Professor JoAnn McGregor, and Professor Ian Scoones, who discussed population distribution and migration, the reconfiguration of the rural economy, and the administration of new settlements in Zimbabwe.

Beacon Mbiba scrutinises Zimbabwe’s urban statistics and cautions about exaggerating the extent of de-urbanisation

PDF version La croissance des grandes villes d’Afrique est si rapide que les gouvernements centraux et municipaux s’en trouvent accablés. Il y a un manque de planification stratégique ; des lacunes dans la prestation de services de base aux résidents s’élargissent de plus en...

This Briefing note describes an attempt by the city of Dakar, the capital of Senegal, to launch the first municipal bond in the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) area, and considers the ramifications of the central government blocking the initiative.

Kilamba New City reportedly cost US$3.5 billion to build. Dr Chloé Buire interrogates the myth it is a “ghost town” and illustrates how the settlement has attracted young, upwardly mobile Angolans.

Chronicling experiences from Panguila, Dr Chloé Buire examines the rapid expansion of suburban Luanda, arguing that it provides insights into the Angolan regime’s vision for modernity.

Land is a “key fault line” in Kenya. Throughout East Africa land law reform has been pursued at the expense of substantive land reform. New laws have not been redistributive or transformative in a positive way.

Jeffrey Paller argues that as Ghana’s cities grow the challenge will be to prevent the creation of more informal settlements, the rise of unregulated transport systems and the deepening of urban inequalities.

Les grandes villes africaines connaissent une croissance et une transformatiojn rapides. En l’absence de politiques d’aménagement appropriées, ells deviendront de plus en plus chaotiques et inefficaces et de moins en moins viables.

Hannah Gibson interviewed Irene Karanja who heads a Kenya-based federation of slum-dwellers. They discussed the anti-eviction movement in Kenya and the federation’s partnership with the University of Nairobi.