DIY urbanism in Africa : politics and practice

Abstract

Protracted economic crises, accelerating inequalities, and increased resource scarcity present significant challenges for the majority of Africa's urban population. Limited state capacity and widespread infrastructure deficiencies common in cities across the continent often require residents to draw on their own resources, knowledge, and expertise to resolve these life and livelihood dilemmas. DIY Urbanism in Africa investigates these practices. It develops a theoretical framework through which to analyze them, and it presents a series of case studies to demonstrate how residents invent new DIY tactics and strategies in response to security, place-making, or economic problems. This book offers a timely critical intervention into literatures on urban development and politics in Africa. It is valuable to students, policymakers, and urban practitioners keen to understand the mechanisms and political implications of widespread dynamics now shaping Africa's expanding urban environments.

<p>Contents: Introduction: Do-it-yourself Urbanism in Africa's Cities / Patience Mususa and Stephen Marr -- Comparative DIY Urbanisms: Reflections on a Concept's Pasts, Presents and Futures / Stephen Marr -- The Makeshift City and Do-it-yourself (DIY) Urbanism / Martin J. Murray -- Reflections on the DIY Paradigm and Urban Living in Nigeria / Mohamed-Bello Yunusa -- DIY Urbanism in an African Context and its Potential as a Collaborative Placemaking Tool for Bridging Africa's Urban Infrastructure Deficit / Mathias Agbo Jr. -- Political Economy of Community-Led Security Provisioning in Urban Africa / Victor Adetula -- The Politics of Urban Insecurity: Hybrid relations and party dominance in Lagos / Nigeria, Henrik Angerbrandt -- 'Accra We Dey': Precarious Histories, Creative Place-Making, and Reimagined Futures in Urban Ghana / Jennifer Hart -- Everyday spatial practices and production of urban commons in Accra, Ghana / Victoria Okoye -- Learning from DIY urbanism: Lessons from Freetown / Federico Monica -- DIY Urbanism as Ecotopia: The Case of the Green Camp Gallery in Durban, South Africa / Antje Daniel -- Disability and Urbanism in Malawi / Jonathan Makuwira -- The Biopolitics of Do-it-yourself Urbanism on the Zambian Copperbelt / Patience Mususa -- Conclusion: DIY Urbanism as Politics of Interruption / Stephen Marr and Patience Mususa</p>