DOCSLIB.ORG

Habitat Debate December 2004 a Message from the Executive Director

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Habitat Debate December 2004 a Message from the Executive Director Habitat Debate December 2004 A message from the Executive Director In 19th century Europe and North that the planning function still falls short. America, the slum problem in cities was Slums are multiplying, urban crime is ram- the catalyst for modern urban planning. pant, development keeps sprawling, trans- But we need to bear in mind that it took port efficiency is declining, energy costs well over a century to substantially elimi- are rising, health problems increase, and nate those slums. many citizens are walling themselves off Slums are the worst, most degrading from others. What’s happening here? Has manifestations of urban poverty, depri- planning failed and does it need to be re- vation, and exclusion in modern world. placed by a more effective approach? And it is a fact that today we have both As the articles in this issue reveal, plan- the technical know-how (such as Geo- ning is accepted everywhere as a neces- graphical Information Systems un- sary function – a hallmark of human soci- dreamed of in the 19th century) the power ety. Municipalities, communities, and and the resources to plan effectively for states all engage in planning. Where it is the target established in the Millennium not working, however, there has been Declaration. much experimentation and innovation to As we enter the 21st century, urban plan- make planning fit the prevailing mood and ning faces the challenge of harmonizing political mode of governance. There have the global norms with locally distinct cul- been some striking success stories. here was a time when messengers tural conditions. While the broad frame- The question raised in this issue of the were executed for being the bear work for planning can have universal ap- Habitat Debate is how to make planning T-ers of bad tidings, and to blame peal, societies and countries should si- more relevant. It would seem that com- urban planners for our urban crises is like multaneously be able to develop their munication throughout the development turning back the clock and going back in own proposals and solutions. Rapid process is part of the key. Open and trans- history to a time when no-one could have change, driven mainly by business and parent governance and inclusive are an- foreseen the problems that we now face. technology, has to be tempered by cul- other big part. Likewise, some humility. We live in a world where UN-HABI- ture and local specificities. Planning thus needs to be interdiscipli- TAT research shows that nearly 1 billion In recent decades, spatial planning has nary, taking in social and cultural situa- people, or 32 per cent of the global urban been grossly maligned. Many of the ills tions. There is no substitute to planning. population languish in slums, mostly in of urbanization have been conveniently But if it is not anchored to local condi- developing countries. In a process that dropped upon the doorstep of urban plan- tions, it can easily be substituted by an- we call the urbanisation of poverty, the ners. Planning, however, does not exist archy. locus of global poverty is moving into as an independent function or as a sepa- Thus the success of planning in the cities. rate agenda. It is one of the responsibili- future may depend on the success with We have to find a concept of urban ties of government to anticipate the fu- which we can cross the boundaries be- planning, which combined with concerted ture and to prepare for it. tween the arts, design, urban and spatial action by local authorities, national gov- There are many reasons why planning planning, public policy, market forces, ar- ernments, civil society actors and the in- may not result in a better living environ- tistic creativity and cultural management. ternational community, works to alleviate ment for all. Planners’ advice may be good Planning needs to be continuously re- the plight of slum dwellers. If we fail, the or bad, taken or ignored. Planners may invented. number of slum dwellers is projected to not have adequate training. Politicians double over the next 30 years to 2 billion, may have a distorted sense of the public making the cauldron of misery and the interest. Plans may be unrealistic, given potential for social unrest twice as great their resource requirements. Powerful eco- Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka as it is today. Member States of the United nomic interests may feel threatened by Nations are committed to “achieve a sig- planning recommendations. Plans may Executive Director nificant improvement in the lives of at not reflect the priorities of community least 100 million slum dwellers by the year groups or business interests. Implemen- 2020”. UN-HABITAT is the agency man- tation authority may be fragmented dated to help governments, municipali- among jurisdictions. ties and all urban actors find the way here. In trying to correct these deficiencies, It means that urban planners and their planning has opened itself to public par- political leaders have not only to address ticipation, to a more realistic view of the needs of slum dwellers for better shel- stakeholder interests, to advocacy work, ter, but also the broader problems of ur- to setting social priorities, to environmen- ban poverty, unemployment, urban gov- tal impact analyses, to multi-jurisdictional ernance, low incomes, and a lack of ac- management and other areas where con- cess to basic services like water and elec- sensus signals good governance at work. tricity. Yet, in today’s world, it would appear 2 Habitat Debate December 2004 3 Global Overview Habitat Debate December 2004 Planning for a better future By Paul Taylor This often left the plans out of date even cern for governance. Management and before they were completed. In the de- managerialism were outflanked, just as rban spatial planning has been veloping world, most of what was imple- planning had been, by an inability to re- in the doldrums for many years. mented had not been planned, and infor- spond fast enough to changes in the ex- UIt has typically been regarded as mal development overwhelmed the as- ternal environment. Management might be old-fashioned, technocratic, and bureau- sumptions and projections of the plans more realistic and efficient, but not nec- cratic, stifling development by wrapping and their visions of orderly development. essarily forward looking. Governance, it up with red tape. Cartoonists depict The world was proving just too chaotic with its emphasis on participation and in- planners as faceless officials, insensitive and dynamic to be encompassed within clusion, responds to the growing demand to the public and responsible for many the bounds of comprehensive master from civil society to address the needs of of the ills faced by modern cities. plans. the poor in a manner that reflects their From the 1950s to the 1970s ur- And even if plans were produced priorities, not just those of planners, tech- ban planning, despite isolated manifes- expeditiously, they took little account of nocrats and administrators. Various glo- tations of public unease with the direc- implementation realities. Plans were of- bal programmes such as UN-HABITAT’s tion it was taking, was a magnet for the ten the product of specialised agencies Urban Management Programme and the brightest and best of those involved in and departments composed of physical Sustainable Cities Programme have pio- government. It was the embodiment of planners. They had little power over neered techniques of participatory urban the dream of the brave new world. Plan- sectoral and infrastructure provision en- decision making with a sectoral focus on ners were socially and politically progres- tities, which were generally reluctant to themes such as the environment, poverty sive. Planning was seen as the means by implement plans in which they hardly had and gender. which government could deliver equi- any say. The only power left to planners table and economically efficient devel- was the control of land use, which they The revival opment in both the developed and the exercised through costly, bureaucratic, developing world. Indeed, in a number So, just as we may have been con- quasi-legalistic and often punitive re- sidering its demise, everywhere there is of countries in the economically devel- gimes. The reliance on this tool has been oped north, it has fulfilled many of its an expectation for a revival in urban plan- one of the main reasons for the alienation ning. This was evident in a vigorous de- expectations. Land use planning has of the citizenry from the process con- been an essential component in the avoid- bate at the Second World Urban Forum in ceived as having public – as opposed to Barcelona in September 2004. The revival ance of city sprawl, economical land use private – interests as its focus. and efficient infrastructure provision, of planning has been evident for some One of the greatest failures of time throughout Western Europe, where especially public modes of transport. planning in the developing world has But, as the neo-liberal world view new approaches to strategic and eco- been its inability to respond to growing nomic planning have incorporated spa- gained dominance during the 1980s, poverty and exclusion. Planning dealt some of the problems of urban spatial tial planning components. with the world through planners’ eyes, The main reason for this is the rec- planning became more evident. But to and planners rely extensively on data. ascribe this to the fall-out of the ascen- ognition that planning is a much-needed The formal economy produces data, but integrative mechanism. Choices need to dancy of a new development model does by definition, the informal economy and not wash. Planning often failed the tasks be made between infrastructure sectors, society is less likely to.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 2020 Edmund N. Bacon Urban Design Awards
    2020 Edmund N. Bacon Urban Design Awards Student Design Competition Brief $25 | per entry at the time of submission $5,000 | First Prize Award Sign up now for more information www.PhiladelphiaCFA.org IMPORTANT DATES August 1, 2019: Full Competition Packet released + Competition opens November 22, 2019: Final date to submit entries February 2020 (date TBD): Awards Ceremony in Philadelphia EDMUND N. BACON URBAN DESIGN AWARDS Founded in 2006 in memory of Philadelphia’s iconic 20th century city planner, Edmund N. Bacon [1910-2005], this annual program honors both professionals and students whose work epitomize excellence in urban design. Each year, a professional who has made significant contributions to the field of urban planning is selected to receive our Edmund N. Bacon Award. In addition, the winners of an international student urban design competition, envisioning a better Philadelphia, are honored with our Edmund N. Bacon Student Awards. The combined awards ceremony is hosted in Philadelphia each February. 2020 STUDENT AWARDS COMPETITION TOPIC THE BIG PICTURE: REVEALING GERMANTOWN’S ASSETS Chelten Avenue is the heart of the Germantown business district in northwest Philadelphia. The most economically diverse neighborhood in the city, Germantown is an African American community which bridges the economically disadvantaged neighborhoods of North Philadelphia to the east with the wealthier Mount Airy and Chestnut Hill neighborhoods to the west. The Chelten Avenue shopping district benefits from two regional rail stations (along different train lines) and one of the busiest bus stops in the city, located midway between the stations. In addition, the southern end of the shopping district is just steps from the expansive Wissahickon Valley Park, one of the most wild places in Philadelphia, visited by over 1 million people each year.
    [Show full text]
  • Improving Urban Planning in Africa
    Improving Urban Planning in Africa By: ERIC JAFFE | NOV 22, 2011 http://www.theatlanticcities.com/design/2011/11/improving-urban-planning-africa/549/ Urbanization is growing at an incredible pace in the global south, but urban planning isn't keeping up. Many planning schools in Africa still promote ideas transferred from the global north. (The master plan of Lusaka, in Zambia, for instance, was based on the concept of the garden city.) As a result, these programs often fail to prepare planners for the problems they will encounter in African cities, such as rapid growth, poverty, and informality — that is, people who pursue livelihoods outside formal employment opportunities. In 2008 the Association of African Planning Schools, a network of 43 institutions that train urban planners, began a three-year effort to reform planning education on the continent. Nancy Odendaal, project coordinator for A.A.P.S. and a planning professor at the University of Cape Town, in South Africa, offers a progress report on this effort in an upcoming issue of the journal Cities. "In order to confront the urbanisation pressures on the continent in all its unique dimensions," she writes, "fundamental shifts are needed in the materials covered in urban training programs and in the methods used to prepare practitioners." Odendaal recently answered some questions about what these shifts entail, and what they might mean for the future of Africa's cities. The aim of A.A.P.S. is to help urban planners in Africa respond to the "special circumstances" of African urbanization, according to your paper. Broadly speaking, what would those be? African urbanization does not follow the "conventional" patterns of industrialization and concomitant job creation in the North, where rapid urban growth was first experienced.
    [Show full text]
  • Urban Africa – Urban Africans Picture: Sandra Staudacher New Encounters of the Urban and the Rural
    7th European Conference on African Studies ECAS 29 June to 1 July 2017 — University of Basel, Switzerland Urban Africa – Urban Africans Picture: Sandra Staudacher New encounters of the urban and the rural www.ecas2017.ch Convening institutions Institutional partners Funding partners ECAS7 Index 3 Welcome 4 Word from the organisers 5 Organisers 6 A* Magazine 7 Programme overview 10 Keynote speakers 12 Hesseling Prize 14 Round Tables 15 Film Sessions 20 Meetings 24 Presentations and Receptions 25 Book launches 26 Panels details (by number) 28 Detailed programme (by date) 96 List of participants 115 Publisher exhibition 130 Practical information 142 Impressum Cover picture: Street scene in Mwanza, Tanzania Picture by Sandra Staudacher. Graphic design: Strichpunkt GmbH, www.strichpunkt.ch. ___ECAS7_CofrenceBook_.indb 3 12.06.17 17:22 4 Welcome ECAS7 ia, India, South Korea, Japan, and Brazil. Currently it has 29 members, 5 associate members and 4 af- filiate members worldwide. Besides the European Conference on African Studies, by far its major ac- tivity, AEGIS promotes various activities to sup- port African Studies, such as specific training events, summer schools, and thematic conferen- ces. Another initiative, the Collaborative Research Groups (CRGs) is creating links between scholars from AEGIS and non-AEGIS centres that engage in collaborative research in new fields. AEGIS also supports the European Librarians in African Stud- ies (ELIAS). A new initiative, relating scholars in Af- rican Studies with social and economic entrepre- neurship is expressed in initiatives such as Africa Works! (African Studies Centre, Leiden) or the I have the great pleasure of welcoming to the 7th Business and Development Forum held just be- European Conference on African Studies ECAS fore ECAS.
    [Show full text]
  • Future of Urban Planning in Africa
    Action Framework for Implementation of the New Urban Agenda (AFINUA) CPR subcommittee 23 Feb 2018 Raf Tuts Director, Programme Division, UN-Habitat [email protected] Yaounde, Cameroon © Flicker, by alvise forcellini Overview Action Framework for Implementation of the New Urban Agenda (AFINUA) ▪ Mandate and timeline ▪ Main categories and key items of the framework ▪ Implementing NUA at regional level, with updates from ROAF, ROAP, ROAS, ROLAC, LO-EUR ▪ Implementing NUA at country level, with examples from Cameroon, Afghanistan, Egypt, Bolivia and Sweden ▪ Next steps 1 ICCCASU II_NUA & AFINUA_Raf Tuts The essentials of the New Urban Agenda Calls for a paradigm shift in how we plan, finance, develop, govern and manage our cities Three transformative commitmentsommitments • Social inclusion and ending poverty • Prosperity and opportunities for all • Sustainable and resilient development Three elements of effective implementation • Urban governance structure • Planning and managing urban space • Means of implementation Three cross cutting principles: • Inclusion • Innovation • Integration The need for evidence-based and practical guidance Encourages UN-Habitat and other stakeholders to generate evidence- based and practical guidance for the implementation of the NUA and urban dimension of the SDG, in close collaboration with Member States, local authorities, major groups, and other relevant stakeholders, as well as through the mobilization of experts (¶128) AFINUA Timeline Apr-Sep 2016 Start of development process and consultations with UN-Habitat
    [Show full text]
  • Urbanisation of Hope Or Despair? Urban Planning Dilemma in Ghana
    Urban Forum (2016) 27:415–432 DOI 10.1007/s12132-016-9293-9 Urbanisation of Hope or Despair? Urban Planning Dilemma in Ghana Patrick Brandful Cobbinah1,2 & Michael Poku-Boansi3 & Raymond Asomani-Boateng4 Published online: 9 November 2016 # Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016 Abstract Our reflections on recent treatment of African urbanisation begins with the assertion that implicit recognition and acceptance of Brapid urbanisation^ as a legitimate and primary cause of urban management challenges—e.g. poverty, slum development, haphazard development, etc.—has impoverished the appreciation of other fundamental causes of poor urban functionality in Ghanaian cities. This article argues that urban planning practice in Ghana has contributed to the many urbanisation challenges in Ghanaian cities, yet remains critical if rapid urbanisation is to be effectively managed. The article provides some useful policy directions to managing rapid urbanisation in Ghana. Keywords Africa . Ghana . Urbanisation . Urban planning . Urban management * Patrick Brandful Cobbinah [email protected] Michael Poku-Boansi [email protected] Raymond Asomani-Boateng [email protected] 1 Department of Environmental Management, Faculty of Environment Society and Design, Lincoln University, PO Box 85084, Lincoln 7647, Christchurch, New Zealand 2 Institute for Land Water and Society, Charles Sturt University, PO Box 789, Albury 2640 NSW, Australia 3 Department of Planning, Faculty of Built Environment, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana 4 Urban and Regional Studies Institute, Minnesota State University Mankato, 106B Morris Hall, Mankato 56001, USA 416 P.B. Cobbinah et al. Introduction It is often reported that rapid urbanisation—i.e. increasing concentration of population in urban areas—provides a conduit for augmenting and compounding urban develop- ment challenges in developing countries, particularly African countries (see Cobbinah and Darkwah 2016a; Misilu et al.
    [Show full text]
  • Rethinking Urban Informality and Informal Settlements Growth in Urban Africa
    Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa (Volume 17, No.6, 2015) ISSN: 1520-5509 Clarion University of Pennsylvania, Clarion, Pennsylvania RETHINKING URBAN INFORMALITY AND INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS GROWTH IN URBAN AFRICA: A LITERATURE DISCUSSION Seth Asare Okyere and Michihiro Kita Division of Global Architecture, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan. ABSTRACT Recent estimates indicate a steady growth in urban informal settlements as part of the urbanization and urban growth process occurring in most cities in Africa. In spite of the reality of this situation, the common understanding of urban informality is varied and often negative. This paper, through a literature study, discusses general perspectives on urban informality in developing countries. It then focuses on urban informal settlements, reasons for its growth in African cities and what urban planning in Africa can learn from its persistence. We also argue that such learning can influence urban sustainable urban development. The paper emphasizes the need to reconsider dominant and conventional thoughts on informal settlements to embrace its inherent patterns and processes in Africa. The paper concludes that urban informal settlements, in spite of dominant negative narratives it has received, can offer important lessons for responsive, inclusive and effective sustainable urban planning strategies in African cities. Keywords: Informality, Informal Settlements, Urbanization, Africa, Urban Planning 101 INTRODUCTION In several developing cities, where there is still rapid urbanization and urban restructuring, demands for housing and land is high but the capacity of government systems are relatively weak. Informal activities therefore dominate every aspect of social and economic activity (Jenkins, 2006) in urban areas.
    [Show full text]
  • Promoting Sustainable Urban Development Networking in African Cities
    Promoting Sustainable Urban Development Networking in African Cities SUD‐Net Workshop 17‐19 February 2009, Cape Town This report summarizes the presentations and discussions at the SUD‐Net Workshop ‘Promoting Sustainable Urban Development Networking in African Cities’, held at the Townhouse Hotel in Cape Town, South Africa, on 17‐19 February 2009. The event was hosted by UN‐Habitat, the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) and the African Centre for Cities, University of Cape Town. Funding was made available by UN‐Habitat and SIDA. This report is prepared by Mirjam van Donk from Isandla Institute, based on summaries prepared by Lynne Smit (Of Course Media). Published in 2009 2 1.0. Introduction The Sustainable Urban Development Network (SUD‐Net), supported by UN‐Habitat, is an innovative network of global partners working with actors and existing networks to promote a multi‐lateral and inter‐disciplinary approach to sustainable urban development. The overall aim is to work at the local level to build the capacities of national governments, strengthen the power of decision‐makers of local authorities and promote the inclusion of the community in decision‐ making processes. Despite the existing knowledge on the impacts of rapid urban population growth and environmental changes, decision‐makers and managers in many developing and least developed countries still lack the necessary capacities to leverage resources to implement sustainable urban development policies. In addition, there is a significant gap between teaching, research and practice on sustainable urban development as well as a lack of skills and professional capacities to deal with environmental and developmental challenges at national and local levels in Africa.
    [Show full text]
  • Colonial and Postcolonial Urban Planning in Africa
    Colonial and Postcolonial International Planning History Society Urban Planning in Africa & Institute of Geography and Spatial Planning CONFERENCE University of Lisbon Colonial & Postcolonial CONFERENCE Edifício IGOT Urban Planning in Africa Cidade Universitária Av. Prof. Gama Pinto E-mail 1649‐003 Lisboa [email protected] Portugal Institute of Geography Website and Spatial Planning https://sites.google.com/site/cpcup2013conference/ University of Lisbon Location Portugal Institute of Geography and Spatial Planning University of Lisbon Lisbon, Portugal 5-6 September 2013 Colonial and Postcolonial PROGRAMME Urban Planning in Africa We invite researchers, planners and postgradua- te students to present critical analyses of the multifaceted urban planning experience in Theme I - 19th and 20th Century Colonial Africa. The Conference – Colonial and Postcolonial Urban Planning in Africa Urban Planning in Africa – aims to re-examine Submissions will be peer-reviewed for content the history of colonial urban planning in Colonial Planning Cultures and appropriateness to this conference. Africa and its legacies in the post- independence period, to learn from contem- The Nature and Function of Colonial Urban porary African scholarship, and to discuss Planning in Africa One of the expected outcomes of the conferen- how postcolonial urban planning cultures can ce is the publication of a selection of papers in actually address these urban challenges and The Institutional Framework of Colonial an edited book and in peer-reviewed academic contribute effectively for the development of Urban Planning journals. sustainable cities in Africa. Urban Planning Issues in Colonial Africa We hope the conference will also provide the opportunity for the development of an inter- The Conference will explore two key themes disciplinary and inter-generational research in the history of urban planning in Africa Theme II - Postcolonial Urban Planning in networks which might help to advance critical Africa thinking about urban planning in Africa.
    [Show full text]
  • Literature Survey: Informality and Planning James Duminy WIEGO Resource Documents
    WIEGO Resource Document No. 1 June 2011 Literature Survey: Informality and Planning James Duminy WIEGO Resource Documents WIEGO resource documents include WIEGO generated literature reviews, annotated bibliographies, and papers reflecting the findings from new empirical work. They provide detail to support advocacy, policy or research on specific issues. This literature survey was, compiled for the Urban Policies Programme of the policy-research net- work Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO). It was commissioned under the Inclusive Cities Project and aims to complement WIEGO’s work on informality and planning curricula. About the Author: James Duminy is a Researcher with the African Centre for Cities. Publication date: June 2011 ISBN number: 978-92-95106-56-7 Please cite this publication as: Duminy, James. 2011. Literature Survey: Informality and Planning. WIEGO Resource Document No. 1. Manchester, UK: WIEGO. Published by Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO) A Charitable Company Limited by Guarantee – Company No. 6273538, Registered Charity No. 1143510 WIEGO Limited 521 Royal Exchange Manchester, M2 7EN United Kingdom www.wiego.org Copyright © WIEGO. This report can be replicated for educational, organizing and policy purposes as long as the source is acknowledged. Cover photograph by: Paula Bronstein/Getty Images Reportage WIEGO Resource Document No 1 Table of Contents 1. Introduction .............................................................................................................................1
    [Show full text]
  • Visions of the Future in Nairobi
    Urban Planning (ISSN: 2183–7635) 2017, Volume 2, Issue 1, Pages 31–40 DOI: 10.17645/up.v2i1.834 Article ‘Our Changes’? Visions of the Future in Nairobi Constance Smith Institute for Global Prosperity, The Bartlett, University College London, London, W1T 7NF, UK; E-Mail: [email protected] Submitted: 6 December 2017 | Accepted: 3 March 2017 | Published: 28 March 2017 Abstract In Kenya, the Vision 2030 masterplan is radically reimagining Nairobi as a ‘world class’ city of the future. This has gener- ated dramatic digital imagery of satellite cities, skyscrapers and shopping malls. For tenants in rundown public housing, these glossy yet speculative visions are enticing, but also provoke anxieties of exclusion. Yet so far, little has materially manifested. This article explores the effects these future vistas produce in the present, in the gap between the urban plan and its implementation. It argues that the spectacle of official planning has generated anticipatory actions, as Nairobians’ engage with the future promised by such schemes. These actions are characterised by dissonant temporal experiences, in which local residents experience the future city as both near at hand and forever out of reach. Keywords Kenya; megaprojects; Nairobi; temporality; urban planning; visual culture Issue This article is part of the issue “Urban Forms and Future Cities”, edited by Luca D’Acci (Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands), Tigran Haas (KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden) and Ronita Bardhan (Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India) © 2017 by the author; licensee Cogitatio (Lisbon, Portugal). This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribu- tion 4.0 International License (CC BY).
    [Show full text]
  • AFRICAN CITIES 2014 Re-Imagining Sustainable Urban Transitions © United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) 2014 All Rights Reserved P.O
    THE STATE OF AFRICAN CITIES 2014 Re-imagining sustainable urban transitions © United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) 2014 All rights reserved P.O. Box 30030 Nairobi 00100, Kenya Tel: +254 20 7623 120 Fax: +254 20 7623 904 Email: [email protected] www.unhabitat.org HS Number: HS/004/14E ISBN Number (Series): 978-92-1-133397-8 ISBN Number (Volume): 978-92-1-132598-0 Design and Layout by Michael Jones Software (MJS), Nairobi, Kenya. Front cover photo: MJS Back cover photo: Giza, Egypt. ©mffoto/Shutterstock DISCLAIMER The designations employed and the presentation of the materials in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. References to names of firms and commercial products and processes do not imply any endorsement by the United Nations. Excerpt of this publication, excluding photographs, may be reproduced without authorization, on condition that the source is indicated. THE STATE OF AFRICAN CITIES 2014 Re-imagining sustainable urban transitions 2 CHAPTER ONE Foreword by UN-Habitat t gives me great pleasure to present The State of African a particular development direction for decades. Given the Cities 2014: Re-imagining sustainable urban transitions - comparatively late onset of the urban transition in Africa, Ithe third publication on Africa in UN-Habitat’s rapidly- however, there exist real opportunities for embracing new expanding regional State of the Cities report series.
    [Show full text]
  • Urban Planning in Africa: Which Alternative for Poor Cities? the Case of Koudougou in Burkina Faso
    Current Urban Studies, 2015, 3, 413-431 Published Online December 2015 in SciRes. http://www.scirp.org/journal/cus http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/cus.2015.34033 Urban Planning in Africa: Which Alternative for Poor Cities? The Case of Koudougou in Burkina Faso Jean-Claude Bolay CODEV (Center for Cooperation and Development) & LaSUR (Urban Sociology Laboratory), EPFL (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne), Lausanne, Switzerland Received 30 November 2015; accepted 21 December 2015; published 24 December 2015 Copyright © 2015 by author and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Abstract The efforts made to plan cities in emerging and developing countries are confronted to multiple issues, especially in small and middle sized cities which can be considered as poor through several criteria: socio-economic level of majority of population; low levels of public investments, weak quality of local administration, and large dependence of external donors. Following several au- thors, one of the main reason is that philosophy and methods of urban planning applied to these specific contexts are directly reproduced from a Western tradition which doesn’t correspond to the local and national context in terms of needs, priorities and organization of the financial re- sources. The case of Koudougou, a medium sized city in one of the poorest countries in the world, Burkina Faso, will give the opportunity to understand concretely how these deficiencies are translated in an urban context, and foresee, more globally, alternative models of urban planning better adapted to poor cities, whose number of inhabitants is growing steadily.
    [Show full text]