Governance for Pro-Poor Urban Development by Obeng-Odoom, Franklin;

Short description:

This book is the first comprehensive, in-depth systematic analysis of the meaning, nature, and effects of ‘urban governance’ in theory and in practice from the perspective of people in developing countries, This book provides a simple but novel taxonomy of urban governance and applies it to entire urban systems in the lived context of entire urban systems cities in Africa.

Long description:

The world development institutions commonly present 'urban governance' as an antidote to the so-called 'urbanisation of poverty' and 'parasitic urbanism' in Africa.

Governance for Pro-Poor Urban Development is a comprehensive and systematic analysis of the meaning, nature, and effects of 'urban governance' in theory and in practice, with a focus on Ghana, a country widely regarded as an island of good governance in the sub region. The book illustrates how diverse groups experience urban governance differently and contextualizes how this experience has worsened social differentiation in cities.

This book will be of great interest to students, teachers, and researchers in development studies, and highly relevant to anyone with an interest in urban studies, geography, political economy, sociology, and African studies.

"…I consider this work a testament of exemplary scholarship. The analyses and arguments are clear while the surveys are insightful and workmanlike. The closing commentaries and conclusions are logical, insightful and especially informative. I find the content and presentation to be original and constitute a significant contribution to the extant body of knowledge on the political economy of urbanization not only in Ghana but also Africa and the developing world in general." – Ambe J. Njoh, Professor of Urban and Regional Planning, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA.

"…It is a solid piece of research and an excellent synthesis of the literature…The work is very strong in deploying a meso level analysis to understanding various policy arenas. A major contribution …is that it understands and links a meso level political economy lens with a meso level urban analysis….It is very impressive how widely read the author is and how deep an understanding he has of diverse literatures. ...His command and grasp of the literature is truly breathtaking and outstanding." – Richard Grant, Professor of Geography and Regional Studies and Director of Urban Studies, University of Miami, USA

"Given the recent emphasis on and popularisation of the concept of urban governance, this [book] makes a substantial and original contribution to debates on its usefulness and its effectiveness, notably through the detailed case-study of Ghana and through the application of a political economy perspective by which to undertake the analysis and evaluation. An important aspect of this originality is the development of an appropriate analytical framework through combining elements of institutional and Marxist political economy." – Gordon Crawford, Professor of Development Politics, University of Leeds, UK.

Table of Contents:

Part 1. Understanding Urban Governance and Cities 1. Introduction 2. Understanding, Historicising, and Conceptualising Urban Governance 3. Theoretical Issues in Urban Analysis Part 2. Urban Problems and Policies in Ghana 4. Urban Employment, Growth, Inequality and Poverty 5. Water, Waste, and Health 6. Urban Transport and Mobility 7. Urban Housing 8. Urban Land Part 3: Evaluation and Prospects of Urban Governance 9. Electoral Governance and Multiple Dimensions of Poverty 10. Urban Governance: Selected Experiences in A frica 11. The Last Word