Elitism and City Development in Africa

Hello Africa, 

Elitism and City Development in Africa.

Development initiatives in African countries are predominantly metropolitan, and  mainly urban-focused. Crippling social challenges which include inadequate basic infrastructure, slums, squalor, and low standard of living are the resultant effect of urban development. In Africa, it is estimated that over 60 percent of urban and city inhabitants live in slums and abject poverty. The development of new cities and urban centers is mainly to eliminate these social ills, rather than reduce  poverty and inequality.

 Figure 1. Atlantic City Project, Lagos Nigeria.

Africa is building new cities across the continent, and most African leaders largely focus on new country capital, mainly for administrative purposes. The future of Africa is to build new smart cities that will drive economic growth and development. The Eko Atlantic City, in Lagos Nigeria, Konza Techno City in Kenya, Kigali Metro-City, and the Modderfontein City in South Africa, are some of the cities that are touted to drive growth in the next decade. However, the developmental strategies for these new cities are not focused on reducing poverty and income inequality, and improving well-being for its population.

The emergence and growth of cities is a major factor for economic development. There is a significant relationship between growth of cities and rising income levels. There is a correlation between the number of cities and  high GDP growth rates. This shows that the richer a country is, the more urbanized it is, and the larger a city is, the more prosperous and wealthy it becomes. Innovation and the the introduction of new skills, research and development, and technology are generally centralized in the urban centers.

 Figure 2: Egypt 4th Generation Cities

Powered by renewable energy and smart technology (Bloomberg, 2023), Egypt’s fourth generation cities feature the latest global standard architecture, designed and built through sustainable and green infrastructure, connected through a vast network of multi-modal communication and transportation system. The main strategy is to build dozens of smart cities that will benefit the Egyptian economy and imrpove the economic well-being of the people.

New cities facilitate the sharing of ideas, acquisition of new skills, development of new technology, and ultimately, high productivity levels. The global future is the emergence of smart cities, where information and communication technology are integrated with a municipality’s institution and infrastructure to improve operational efficiency, improve the quality of government processes and services, and ultimately provide economic opportunities for its citizens. The main development strategy for the emergence of smart cities is to optimize city functions and drive economic growth for improved welfare. The top 10 smart cities in the world have developed innovation centered around the quality of life for its citizens. This connects citizens with government processes, which enhances communication, and improve the quality of life and economic well-being.

 Figure 3: Kenya Friendship City 

Kenya plans (2019) to build a mega city in the outskirts of Nairobi, dubbed the “Friendship City”. This city development is projected to create over 150,000 jobs, and indirectly impacting the lives of over 2 million Kenyans. This city development is expected to have the status of an Economic Zone with a township, equipped with functional parks, and multi-purpose recreational facilities. Development initiatives and the provision of infrastructural facilities in the developing countries of Africa are often urban-focused. The development and growth of new cities is usually not the focus in Africa’s economic growth initiatives.

Mooikloof Mega City is planned as a massive smart city project, located on the east of Pretoria. This new city development, estimated cost of R84 billion, is projected to feature 16,000 residential developments, academic institutions, commercial properties, corporate facilities, and offices, all built with the green initiative. Like the Eko Atlantic City initiative, in Lagos Nigeria, this development is a public-private partnership initiative. The initial idea was to provide affordable residential apartments and housing to South Africans. UNCTAD (2021) estimates  show that 490 million Africans lived in extreme poverty, and this represents a staggering 35 percent of the total population in Africa. This number continues to rise, and within Africa, most poor are concentrated in Sub-Saharan region, Central Africa has the highest extreme poverty rate of 54 percent, and followed by Southern Africa at 45 percent. Studies have shown that the growth of cities in Africa has not kept pace with economic growth and development. New city development must be connected to the world, and take advantage of global developmental standards of improving citizen’s well-being, expanding markets, innovation, technology, and attracting investments. New city development strategies are not focusing on reducing income inequality, poverty levels, and improving economic well-being.

Figure 4: Typical Rural Area in Africa

Overall, the emergence of new cities would be the most trans-formative factor in driving growth in Africa in the 21^st century. As at 2022, there are over 7,600 cities in Africa with a growth of 51 percent between 1990 and 2022, and a total population of 490 million people. In comparison, there are over 4 million productive and economic-driven cities in the world. The United States has over 108,000 (2022) productive cities and towns in all the 50 states, including Pueto Rico, US Virgin Islands, and District of Columbia. In comparison, China has over 1,830 cities, and the largest city in the world by population. Cities are the growth factors for global economic activities, generating over 80 percent of the world’s GDP. Cities create jobs, investments, and ultimately raise income and well-being. The cities are places of research and innovation, technological advancement, growth in commerce, and infrastructural advancement. Cities are where science and technology thrive. 

Figure 5. New City Development in Africa

Future development strategies for new cities must be people-centered. As at 2022, over 420 million Africans were living in extreme poverty, and the number of poor people increased from the 2021 figures. In 2022, 12 percent of the global poor lived in Nigeria. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa. Nigeria currently has a little over 58 productive cities that contributes less than 10 percent of its GDP of 440 billion (2021). The Eko Atlantic City project in Lagos Nigeria, is expected to attract over 200,000 people, and create over 150,000 jobs upon completion. The project is a prime real estate public-private initiative that is located in the heart of a city with a staggering population of over 15 million people. Analysts have argued that this project is elitist and does not meet the criteria of a smart city that would integrate information and communication technology and innovation, with government institution and infrastructural processes,  that would ultimately improve institutional processes, raise productivity levels, and reduce income inequality, in a country with over 130 million people living in poverty.    

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