Neoliberal urban development and the polarization of urban governance

Abstract

This paper explores the impact of neoliberal urban planning on urban governance, using Dar es Salam as a case study. Drawing on planning literature and the concepts of ‘state-capitalist,’ ‘coercive monopoly,’ and ‘de jure collusion’, the paper examines how the desire to spur economic growth has undermined planning practice and city management. By combining literature, observations and interviews with practitioners and academics, the paper reveals that neoliberal planning promotes elite interests, over the needs of the poor, limiting their right to the city. Planning is reduced to a mere exercise of market facilitation, with little to no social impact. Lack of social resonance, the paper notes, suggests a misplaced priority and a parochial preoccupation among city authorities. To create equitable urban spaces and development, the paper argues for a shift toward inclusive planning approaches in the cities of the Global South.