Latest News + Insights
Postdoc Profile: Elizabeth Dessie
Elizabeth Dessie talks about her research background, her interest in rural–urban youth migration and how people experience urban life differently, and why she is excited to be a part of ACRC.
Urban Action Lab founder Shuaib Lwasa joins ACRC
We are delighted to welcome Shuaib Lwasa, founder of the Urban Action Lab at Makerere University, to the African Cities Research Consortium’s senior management team.
Upgrading informal settlements in African cities
In most African cities, more than half of the population live in informal settlements. Residents of such settlements often lack basic services and infrastructure, also facing unsafe housing and insecure tenure.
Interrogating gender inequalities in African cities
A number of core themes cut across different elements of the African Cities conceptual framework, including climate change, financing and gender. Due to their centrality in the political economy of urban development in Africa, these issues will be subject to explicit investigation and analysis. For International Women’s Day, we’re outlining how we’re approaching gender as a crosscutting theme in our research.
The challenges of governing Lagos, the city that keeps growing
From its historical origins as a fishing village and the site of a pepper farm, to today’s bustling metropolis, Lagos has evolved into a complex agglomeration of people, settlements and vested interests.
The political economy of urban reform in Africa: Call for papers
The African Cities Research Consortium (ACRC) will convene a panel at this year’s Development Studies Association Conference, exploring new research on the political economy of urban reform in African cities.
Addis Ababa yet to meet the needs of residents: What has to change
With an estimated population of more than 3.7 million people, Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, is home to about a quarter of Ethiopia’s urban population. The city generates well above 29% of Ethiopia’s urban GDP and 20% of national urban employment.
Why urban poverty in sub-Saharan Africa needs more attention
The challenges facing urban economies in sub-Saharan Africa are considerable. Yet while development economics is a well-established field, relatively little attention has been paid to urban economies in the global South.
ACRC’s approach to catalysing urban reform
Our recent blog series delves into the concepts underpinning the African Cities Research Consortium’s research approach, covering the challenges and opportunities of urban development in Africa, an overview of our conceptual framework, and more detail on how our “city of systems” approach, political settlements analysis and urban development domains will feed into our wider research programme.
African cities and urban sustainability: A conversation with Shuaib Lwasa
The Global Development Institute’s latest podcast episode features Shuaib Lwasa, founder and director of the Urban Action Lab, in conversation with ACRC’s co-research director Seth Schindler. They reflect on COP26 in Glasgow, discuss how Africa can position itself as an innovator in climate solutions, and talk about urban development in African cities.
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