Latest News + Insights
Community mapping in Kenya improves state Covid-19 response
This case study – originally published as part of the Covid Collective Research for Policy and Practice series – shows how an urban social movement was able to produce the knowledge that state agencies needed when the pandemic struck, securing more inclusive policy responses and building legitimacy for alternative knowledge processes and associated development ambitions.
African cities from 500 AD to 1900
Most large African cities today were already well-established when colonial rule began to expand dramatically in the late 19th century. Most preceded the slave trade era too. This blog outlines the history of cities in Africa from 500 AD up to the late 19th century.
What are the largest cities in Africa – today and in 1800?
We know relatively little about most of Africa’s pre-colonial urban history and the role of its cities. This is something especially pronounced in sub-Saharan Africa.
Valuing water in the Global South
To mark World Water Day 2021, Diana Mitlin, Professor of Global Urbanism at The University of Manchester’s Global Development Institute, discusses the issues the Global South face when it comes to accessing clean water.
Webinar: an introduction to the African Cities Research Consortium
Catch up on our webinar introducing the African Cities Research Consortium (ACRC) and outlining how the Consortium and its international partners are planning to tackle complex, political and systemic problems in some of Africa’s fastest-growing urban areas.
Participatory urban planning in action
In Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, local SDI groups have played a critical role in making participatory planning a reality.
Vaccines, information and the ongoing crisis of affordability for the urban poor
As news on Covid-19 vaccines spreads good cheer in the wealthier countries of the global North, thoughts turn to when we will be able to return to normal life.
The power of data in a pandemic: repurposing Muungano’s data-collection expertise to fight Covid-19 in Kenya
Muungano wa Wanavijiji learned long ago that data in the hands of the community is a powerful tool. For over two decades the Muungano Alliance (comprising Muungano wa Wanavijiji, SDI Kenya and Akiba Mashinani Trust) has worked to build community data collection skills in settlement profiling, mapping and enumeration.
Symposium to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the 5th Pan-African Congress in Manchester
On 17th October, the Global Development Institute held a day-long symposium to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the 5th Pan-African Congress which was held in Manchester.
Overcrowding, not density, makes cities more vulnerable to Covid-19
Covid-19 has brought a new realization to many governments and development agencies. Investment in towns and cities is essential. People need to live in healthy neighbourhoods with access to basic services. With this new interest, it is critical that appropriate learning takes place so that interventions can be successfully designed.
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