scholarly journals Conclusion: African cities in the world of today and tomorrow

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Goran Therborn ◽  
Alan Mabin
Keyword(s):  
African Cities ◽  
The World

Chapter 12 in the book Refractions of the National, the Popular and the Global in African Cities.

Informal Economic Activity in African Cities: proposals for research

1976 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 696-699 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart W. Sinclair
Keyword(s):  
Economic Activity ◽  
Urban Policy ◽  
Task Force ◽  
African Cities ◽  
The World

This brief note will argue the case for certain lines of investigation, both empirical and theoretical, in African cities. It is increasingly recognised that the constellation of issues revolving around urbanisation and its effects will be a major factor in development for the rest of the century: witness the convocation of the Habitat Conference in Vancouver, June 1976, and the World Bank's new Urban Policy Task Force. Yet, as always, comprehension trails behind actual developments.

scholarly journals Representing African cities in Wikipedia

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 388-396
Author(s):  
Brendan Luyt
Keyword(s):  
New Media ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Multiple Perspectives ◽  
African Cities ◽  
Amorphous Network ◽  
The World ◽  
Production And Distribution ◽  
History Of ◽  
Media Work ◽  
Sub Saharan

The role played by representations in the lives of cities endows the study of their production and distribution in various media with importance. Today, the Internet, that amorphous network linking much of the world, is a powerful new media for the imagination of city spaces and hence in need of investigation. In this article, I focus on the online encyclopaedia Wikipedia, one of the most popular websites on the Internet. My aim is to explore the representations of two of the largest sub-Saharan African cities, Lagos and Kinshasa, in their respective Wikipedia articles. Wikipedia has been described as the encyclopaedia anyone can edit, suggesting that it is open to multiple perspectives on any particular topic. Given the history of how Africa in general has been either marginalized or conjured as an exotic or miserable “other” by much media work this potential for wider range of representations should not be overlooked. Does Wikipedia live up to its reputation in the case of Kinshasa and Lagos?

Theorisations of African cities need to be careful of jumping onto the ‘urban band wagon’

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (0) ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Mfaniseni Fana Sihlongonyane
Keyword(s):  
Urban Growth ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
African Continent ◽  
African Cities ◽  
The World ◽  
The Future

The observation that cities are growing rapidly especially in the African continent is well acknowledged around the world. Indeed, ‘an urban-centric discourse’ has emerged to assert that the future is ‘urban’ as more people are moving to live in cities (UN, 2018). While the issue of growth cannot be challenged, one needs to look at the dangers of this discourse in African cities. The dynamics of urban growth in African cities are more complex and different from industrialised Europe from which this discourse is modelled. Hence, the patterns of contemporary urban growth and economic transformation in Africa might well undermine assumed urban-centric theoretical associations.

Cities Capital and Development. African Cities in the World Economy

1993 ◽  
Vol 159 (2) ◽  
pp. 233
Author(s):  
W. B. Morgan ◽  
David Simon
Keyword(s):  
World Economy ◽  
African Cities ◽  
The World

Cities, Capital, and Development: African Cities in the World Economy

1993 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. 494
Author(s):  
Ezekiel Kalipeni ◽  
David Simon
Keyword(s):  
World Economy ◽  
African Cities ◽  
The World

Theories of Urbanization and the Colonial City in West Africa

Africa ◽  
1974 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 163-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. R. Rayfield
Keyword(s):  
Rapid Development ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
African Cities ◽  
The Social ◽  
The World ◽  
New Models ◽  
Process Of Urbanization ◽  
Opening Paragraph ◽  
New Research ◽  
The Relationship

Opening ParagraphThe main purpose of this paper is to show how recent research into the process of urbanization in Africa and into the structure of African cities and nations compels us to rethink our theories of urbanization in general.The relationship between theory and research is a reciprocal one. New research compels the creation of new models, and new models suggest new subjects and methods of research. But both theory and research are affected by politics in the broadest sense of the term. Many African scholars consider the study of modern Africa by Westerners an extension of economic and political colonialism, especially when African cities are studied in terms of Western models. And many African governments, aware of the social problems involved in urbanization, seriously study the work of both African and non-African social scientists. The period since 1960 has been one of rapid development in the study of urbanization in Africa and the rest of the world, and the African material should throw new light on general theories of urbanization.

scholarly journals Changing Faces Competition. Mobilizing Citizens to Reclaim Public Spaces in Nairobi

2019 ◽  
pp. 61-86
Author(s):  
Anna Tehlova
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Social Benefits ◽  
Wide Spread ◽  
Public Authorities ◽  
African Cities ◽  
Space Network ◽  
Raising Awareness ◽  
The World

Statistics show that urban green public spaces deteriorate globally. In African cities, where the urbanization rates are the highest in the world, public spaces quickly disappear under layers of garbage or are grabbed. For public authorities having to deal with other pressing socio-economic challenges in the context of outdated regulations, insufficient capacity and resources and wide-spread corruption, public spaces are not a priority. However, the research worldwide has demonstrated the potential of public spaces to become the key catalyst of socio-economic growth given their environmental, economic and social benefits that are however largely ignored by public authorities and the general public in African cities. This article suggests a citizen-driven public space upgrading movement can address these challenges and presents a gamification approach for citizen mobilization and raising awareness: The Changing Faces Competition that has been piloted by Nairobi-based organizations Dandora Transformation League and Public Space Network.

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