Urban Growth & the South

For the first time in history more people around the world live in urban areas than in rural ones. The UN (2008) projects that 60 percent of the world’s population will live in cities by 2030. This trend towards an increasingly urban world is driven primarily by urbanization and urban growth in low and middle-income countries, especially in Africa and Africa. From urban development policy and practice this is crucial. Much is made of the rise in urban poverty, overurbanization, the rise of mega cities and unprecedented growth in the South, fuelling fears about negative social and political impact of urban growth (Gugler, 1997). The dramatic difference in the timing and rate of demographic transition in the North and South (Livi-Bacci, 2001), along with the decoupling of the historical relationship between urbanization and industrialization has caused much alarm.

It seems clear that we live in a world that is fundamentally different to the world we have known over the history of mankind. However predicting either development or urban growth is notoriously difficult, and predicting both together is a task fraught with uncertainty. Both are dynamic processes that are continual and ever varying. However, through effective governance and policy structures, we have the power to affect the way the story of the city goes forward. While rapid urban growth has resulted in pressing developmental issues that need urgent attention, some myths must be dispelled in order to think clearly about the future of cities in the global South. We need to reframe urban policy and practice to steer progress in a sustainable, equitable direction.