In this lecture, Edgar Pieterse, professor at the University of Cape Town and the founding director of the African Centre for Cities, puts forward the concept of the underlying logic of slum urbanism. This logic in turn manifests in an overall urban form that can be characterised as 'extreme splintered urbanism'—a pattern of urban development that manifests in sharp urban divides, the privatisation of key urban services and infrastructure linked to large-scale slum neglect over long periods of time. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quhfgiZBfeA
mp3 iconHow can we transcend Slum Urbanism in Africa? - Edgar Pieterse

BIOGRAPHY

Edgar Pieterse is holder of the South African Research Chair in Urban Policy. He is founding director the African Centre for Cities (ACC) and is professor in the School of Architecture, Planning and Geomatics, both at the University of Cape Town. His research stems from the borderzone between geography, planning and cultural studies with a strong orientation towards political philosophy. He is consulting editor for Cityscapes—an international magazine on urbanism in the global South. His most recent co-edited books are: Africa’s Urban Revolution (Zed, 2014); Rogue Urbanism: Emergent African Cities (Jacana, 2013); African Cities Reader II: Mobility & Fixtures (Chimurenga, 2011). At present he is leading a policy process to formulate the “Integrated Urban Development Framework” for South Africa.

SYNOPSIS

Edgar Pieterse in this lecture argues that data about economic incorporation into the labour market and living conditions demonstrate that the majority of African urban dwellers live in conditions of vulnerability, and that economic insecurity reinforces slum living and makes it difficult for states to access sufficient tax revenues to address a variety of urban pressures. Pieterse poses the question: “if we acknowledge this tough reality, how can we formulate policy agendas that can break this cycle of exclusion and injustice?” The lecture provides a macro framework to develop alternative modalities of urban management and governance rooted in ethical values and practical experiences.

Pieterse puts forward the concept of the underlying logics of slum urbanism, which in turn manifests in an overall urban form that can be characterized as ‘extreme splintered urbanism’—a pattern of urban development that manifests in sharp urban divides, the privatization of key urban services and infrastructure linked to large-scale slum neglect over long periods of time. In response the concept of Urban Operating Systems is introduced to identify the macro entry points for transforming urban systems over 2-3 decades. The operating systems are: infrastructure, economy, land markets and the governance. Alternative approaches to each are identified as a provocation for further research and praxis.

Propositions for addressing the issue:

Probable statistical trends with regard to work and living conditions indicate that the majority of urban dwellers in Africa will find themselves in conditions of insecurity and informality.

These trends create a negative spiral that perpetuates slum urbanism.

The cumulative impacts of slum urbanism is the production of a polycrisis as various pressures—water, electricity, waste, ecosystem degradation, land scarcity, democratic deficits, and so on—reinforce and exacerbate each other.

Urban governments in coalition with various actors need to get ahead of these trends and produce long-range strategic frameworks that can systematically shift the underlying logics of the urban system.

The Urban Operating Systems framework provide an accessible and comprehensive lens to do so.

ASSOCIATED MATERIAL

Recent Publications:

 Rogue Urbanism

Africa’s Urban Revolution

Other links:

Cityscape Digital

Urban SDG