Earlier this month, our CEO Professor Diana Mitlin participated at the 9th Urbanization and Development Conference, organised by the World Bank and the International Growth Centre in Cape Town.
As a former economist, Diana has long been keen to bring economists into conversation with other development practitioners and researchers.
Reflecting on the varied discussions at the conference, Diana said:
“In many African cities, we are witnessing remarkable urban innovation. This is often driven by local governments working alongside organised communities, businesses and researchers. It is crucial that we recognise and nurture this organic growth.
There is immense value in integrating economics into urban studies; this interdisciplinary approach offers profound insights into the dynamics of urban development.
Conversely, it is equally important for economists to engage directly with urban realities, moving beyond abstract data to understand the complex, interwoven relationships that define our cities.”
You can watch Diana’s contributions to the conference below, where she presented “Understanding the contribution of housing to economic development”, pushing back again the idea of “consumption cities” and “sterile agglomeration”. Instead, she highlighted the economic potential of working with small-scale businesses located within informal settlements to generate growth from below.
Diana also acted as a discussant in a policy-focused session on solutions for prosperous African cities, emphasising the importance of understanding the realities of people within cities and the dominance of informal settlements, and also the role of urban reform coalitions.
Note: This article presents the views of the authors featured and does not necessarily represent the views of the African Cities Research Consortium as a whole.
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