The Institute of Development Studies and Partner Organisations
Browse

Urban land development in Africa

Download (1.12 MB)
chapter
posted on 2024-09-06, 05:53 authored by Innocent Chirisa, Elmond Bandauko, Godfrey Chikowore
Africa, with the most recent urban tradition and experience of city life, is currently urbanising at more than 4 per cent annually (UNHABITAT, 2010). In 1995, only 28 cities on the continent had populations exceeding one million. By 2005, this had grown to 43 cities, and it is expected that by 2015, there will be 59 African cities with populations exceeding One million. In the region, the urban population of 413 million (40 per cent) in 2010 is expected to rise to 569 million (45 per cent) in 2020 (Taipale, 2012). The high rate of rural to urban migration in African cities places central and local governments under pressure of providing housing for the ballooning urban populace. Largely, the housing demand is greater than the supply. Africa has been witnessing an unprecedented rate of urbanisation, which has resulted in rapid urban expansion beyond the control of local authorities and central governments alike. The outcomes are not always desirable. Many African countries have experienced increasing inequality, rising informality and mushrooming urban slums and informal settlements as well as low levels of quality of life. At the same time, the continent is experiencing vigorous and sustained economic growth. Much of this economic growth is riding on the back of the urbanisation process, as cities are engines of growth and development in the continent (UNHABITAT, 2010). We argue that the human factor is usually the main outstanding missing link in urban land development initiatives in Africa, a trend that then explains increasing urban poverty and inequalities among the local populations.

A research paper on urban land development in Africa.

History

Publisher

University of Zimbabwe (UZ) Publications

Citation

Chirisa, I., Bandauko, E. and Chikowore, G. (2014) Urban land development in Africa. In: Mararike, C.G. (ed.) Land: an empowerment asset for Africa: the human factor perspective. Harare: UZ Publication, pp. 127-150.

IDS Item Types

Book chapter

Copyright holder

University of Zimbabwe (UZ)

Country

Africa.

Language

en

Identifier ISBN

978-1-77920-110-2

Usage metrics

    University of Zimbabwe Social Sciences Research

    Categories

    No categories selected

    Exports

    RefWorks
    BibTeX
    Ref. manager
    Endnote
    DataCite
    NLM
    DC