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2 - Annals of Urban Planning in Africa

from Part I - Understanding Sustainable Urban Planning in Africa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 December 2023

By
Rhoda Mensah Darkwah  and
Patrick Brandful Cobbinah
Edited by
Patrick Brandful Cobbinah  and
Eric Gaisie
Patrick Brandful Cobbinah
Affiliation:
University of Melbourne
Eric Gaisie
Affiliation:
University of Melbourne
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Summary

Urban planning in Africa is linked to elements of colonisation, production of informal spaces and socio-spatial segregation. Discussing it often provokes considerable emotions. How do urban planning histories fit into current planning practice? What constitutes reimagined urban planning in African cities? And how do current urban planning practices promote or limit urban planning reimagination and sustainable urban development? This chapter addresses these questions by highlighting the importance of planning histories in framing current planning theory and the production of urban spaces in Africa as well as their implication for sustainable urban development. The chapter shows how pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial planning narratives continue to dominate and frame twenty-first-century planning practice across African cities. Drawing from published literature, policy documents and international reports, the chapter advocates for a participatory narrative in deconstructing planning,and promoting inclusiveness and spatial integration toward a reimagination of urban planning in Africa.

Keywords

urban planninginformalitycolonisationsustainable urban developmentAfrica
Type
Chapter
Information
Reimagining Urban Planning in Africa , pp. 18 - 35
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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