Abstract
Cities in Sub-Saharan Africa are growing faster than in any other part of the world, driven by expanding informal settlement (usually on the urban periphery) and the real-estate sector aiming for up-market property development. The continent currently has the highest real-estate value growth potential in the world. Much up-market property development is currently taking the form of new ‘cities’—sometimes a redevelopment of an entire city (e.g., Kigali), sometimes a new city on an urban edge (e.g., Eko-Atlantic, Lagos) and sometimes a new satellite city (e.g., Tatu City, Nairobi). These projects are driven by international property development companies often in collaboration with governments and sometimes with local planning and property partners. All manifest as plans in a new way: as graphics on the websites of international consultants. Most involve no public participation and attempt to by-pass planning laws and processes. Producing these new plans (as computer generated images) are a new set of professionals: architects, planners, visualisers, advertising executives and project managers, working together in offices in global capitals of the world. Their aim is commercial. Planning in these projects is no longer shaped by the materiality of the city and attempts to achieve socio-spatial justice and sustainability. Rather planning is shaped by the circulation of graphics through a network of software programmes and marketing professionals. This article will situate Africa’s new cities in theorisation of urban development and the role of urban planning through digital visualization.
Highlights
The thematic issue this article belongs to argues that the mediatisation and digitalisation of communication processes in urban planning has been taking place with increasing speed
This article suggests that these communication processes are having a major impact on new forms of urban development on the African continent, primarily through their adoption by international real-estate companies embarking on urban mega-projects
This article addresses the following questions: What new forms of urban planning processes and outcomes are emerging on the African continent? What economic and political factors are driving these new approaches to urban development? Which actors and technologies are playing a role in these new approaches and how are they shaping urban outcomes? what are the implications of these new approaches for future urban development and the key societal and environmental issues which cities face? My research is based on existing published literature on these questions and on website explorations
Summary
The thematic issue this article belongs to argues that the mediatisation and digitalisation of communication processes in urban planning has been taking place with increasing speed. This article suggests that these communication processes are having a major impact on new forms of urban development on the African continent, primarily through their adoption by international real-estate companies embarking on urban mega-projects. Urban Planning, 2020, Volume 5, Issue 2, Pages 35–43 tional support to their land and planning approvals and infrastructure servicing This planning is very different to the forms of participation and communication long promoted by planning theorists (such as collaborative and communicative planning) which aim at democratic and inclusionary planning processes. My research is based on existing published literature on these questions and on website explorations It concludes that technologies involving CGIs (computer generated images) of new urban visions are playing a growing role in what are largely private-sector and profit driven proposals for new urban development. The fourth section of the article discusses the implications of this wave of mediatised planning for sustainable and equitable urban development in African cities
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