7 - Localising the SDGs in African Cities: A Grounded Methodology
Corresponding Author(s) : Omar Nagati
Africa Development,
Vol. 47 No. 4 (2022): Africa Development
Abstract
This article’s starting point is the recognition that urban Africa faces a set of
economic, social, political and infrastructural challenges sufficiently specific to
its context to warrant its own (hitherto modest) repertoire of the Sustainable
Development Goal (SDG) localisation roadmaps. Drawing on field-based
comparative research across Cairo and Dar es Salaam, and focusing on SDG
6 (water and sanitation) and SDG 11.2 (mobility), the article develops a
research methodology that helps to detect fissures between the general SDG
framework and microscopic realities on the ground in African cities. Although
each of the two cities has a specific set of urban realities and development
paradigms, the paper develops a localisation process that is applicable across
both geographies (and beyond) based on the similar prevalence of urban
informality in African cities, which the current SDG framework insufficiently,
or at times inaccurately, factors in. The methodology comprises three key
components: 1) a top-down policy analysis of SDG responses at national and
city levels; 2) grounded field research of local practices at a neighbourhood
level; and 3) revising the SDG targets and indicators through a proposed
‘Toolkit for Localising’.
Keywords
Download Citation
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS)BibTeX
- Arfvidsson, H., Simon, D., Oloko, M. and Moodley, N., 2016, Engaging with and Measuring Informality in the Proposed Urban Sustainable Development Goal, African Geographical Review, Vol. 36, No. 1, pp.100–114.
- Banks, N., Lombard, M. and Mitlin, D., 2019, Urban Informality as a Site of Critical Analysis, The Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 56, No. 2, pp. 223–238.
- CAPMAS, 2017, Egyptian Population by Sex, Giza Governorate, Qism al-Agouza. Cairo: CAPMAS.
- Caprotti, F., Cowley, R., Datta, A., Broto, V. C., Gao, E., Georgeson, L., Herrick, C., Odendaal, N. and Joss, S., 2017, The New Urban Agenda: Key Opportunities and Challenges for Policy and Practice, Urban Research and Practice, Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 367–378.
- Croese, S., Green, C. and Morgan, G., 2020, Localising the Sustainable Development Goals Through the Lens of Urban Resilience: Lessons and Learnings from 100 Resilient Cities and Cape Town, Sustainability, Vol. 12, No. 2.
- Eto, H. and Yamamoto, S., 2012, Methodology Transfers Between Social Sciences and Humanities in Relation to Natural Sciences, Technology and Government Policy, in. López-Varela, A., ed., Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Social Sciences and Knowledge Management, London, UK: InTechOpen, pp. 48–68.
- Fraisl, D., Campbell, J., See, L., Wehn, U., … Masó, J., Penker, M. and Fritz, S., 2020, Mapping Citizen Science Contributions to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Sustainability Science. Vol. 15, pp. 1735–51.
- Fritz, S., See, L., Carlson, T., … Parker, A., Weisspflug, M. and West, S., 2019, Citizen Science and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Nature Sustainability, Vol. 2, No. 10, pp. 922–930.
- Gad, H., 2016, Neighboring Patterns between Formal and Informal Areas in Cairo, Case Study: Ard Al Lewaa and El Mohandeseen, Master’s thesis, Cairo University. General Organisation for Physical Planning (GOPP), 2012, Detailed Plan and Existing Situation Analysis, Unpublished PowerPoint presentation.
- Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments, 2016, Roadmap for Localising the SDGs: Implementation and Monitoring At Subnational Level. Available online at https://www.uclg.org/sites/default/files/roadmap_for_localising_the_sdgs_0.pdf. Groenewald, L., Huchzermeyer, M., Kornienko, K., Tredoux, M., Rubin, M. and Raposo, I., 2013, Breaking Down the Binary: Meanings Of Informal Settlement In Southern African Cities, in: Bekker, S. and Fourchard, L., eds., Politics and Policies Governing Cities in Africa, Cape Town: HSRC Press, pp. 93–116.
- Hansen, K. and Vaa, M., 2004, Reconsidering Informality: Perspectives from Urban Africa, Uppsala: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet.
- Hassan, R., 2019, Creating A Safe Zone for Girls in Informal Areas in Cairo, Powerpoint presentation, Population Council.
- Kangai, C., 2012, Social Research Methods in Higher Education: A Critical Analysis of Methodological Issues and Emerging Trends at the Zimbabwe Open University, in López-Varela, A., ed., Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Social Sciences and Knowledge Management, London, UK: InTechOpen, pp.1–47. Kikwasi, G. and Mbuya, E., 2017, Vulnerability Analysis of Building Structures to Climate Change: The Case of Flooding in Informal Settlements in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Unpublished PhD thesis. Kumi, E., Arhin, A. and Yeboah, T., 2013, Can Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals Survive Neoliberalism? A Critical Examination of The Sustainable Development–Neoliberalism Nexus In Developing Countries, Environment, Development and Sustainability, Vol. 16, No. 3, pp. 539–554.
- Kyessi, A. G., 2002, Community Participation in Urban Infrastructure Provision: Servicing Informal Settlements in Dar es Salaam, Dortmund: University of Dortmund.
- Li, T., 2007, The Will to Improve: Governmentality, Development, And the Practice of Politics, Durham: Duke University Press.
- Lusagalika, J. S., 2020, The Role and Influence of Media in Creating Environmental Awareness in Dar es Salaam Tanzania, Nokoko, Vol. 8, pp. 83–98.
- Malonza, J. M. and Ortega, A. A., 2020, Fissures in Localising Urban Sustainability: The Case of Rwanda, GeoJournal. Available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10708-020-10239-8.
- McGee, T. G., 1978, An Invitation To The ‘Ball’: Dress ‘Formal’ Or `Informal’?, in Rimmer, P. J. D., Drakakis-Smith, W. and McGee, T. G., eds., Food Shelter and Transport in Asia and the Pacific, Department of Human Geography, Monograph 12, Canberra: The Australian National University, pp. 3–28.
- Nagati, O., 2016, The Danger of Romanticising Informality, in Angélil, M. M. and Malterre-Barthes, C., eds, Housing Cairo: The Informal Response, Berlin: Ruby Press. Nagati, O. and Stryker, B., 2021, Formal-Informal Interface: Comparative Analysis between Three Egyptian Cities, in Marrengane N. and Croese, S., eds, Reframing the Urban Challenge in Africa: Knowledge Co-Production from the South, London, UK: Routledge.
- Nagati, O., El-Didi, A., Gad, H., Kihila, J., Mbuya, E. and Njavike, E., 2021 [forthcoming], Towards a Bottom-up Approach for Localising SDGs in African cities, Draft presented to CODESRIA, June 2020.
- Oosterhof, P. D., 2018, Localising the Sustainable Development Goals to Accelerate Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, ADB: The Governance Brief, 33, pp. 1–14. Available online at https://www.adb.org/sites/ default/files/publication/472021/governance-brief-033-sdgs-implementation- 2030-agenda.pdf.
- Roy A., 2005, Urban Informality: Toward an Epistemology of Planning, Journal of the American Planning Association, Vol. 71, No. 2, pp. 147–158.
- Saleem, H. T., Likindikoki, S., Silberg, C., Mbwambo, J. and Latkin, C., 2021, Time-Space Constraints to HIV Treatment Engagement Among Women Who Use Heroin in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: A Time Geography Perspective, Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 268, 113379.
- Sexsmith, K. and McMichael, P., 2015, Formulating the SDGs: Reproducing or Reimagining State-Centered Development?, Globalisations, Vol. 12, No. 4, pp. 581–596.
- Simon, D., Arfvidsson, H., Anand, G., … Evans, L. M., Moodley, N. and Nyambuga, C., 2016, Developing and Testing the Urban Sustainable Development Goals targets and indicators – a Five–City Study, Environment and Urbanisation, Vol. 28, No. 1, pp. 49–63.
- UCLG, 2014, How to Localize Targets and Indicators of the Post-2015 Agenda, UCLG Inputs for the Global Taskforce, Working Paper 14, November 2014. Available online at https://www.uclg.org/sites/default/files/localisation_targets_ indicator_web.pdf.
- UN-Habitat, 2015, Habitat III Issue Paper 22 – Informal Settlements, Nairobi: UN Habitat.
- United Nations (UN), 2015, Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 25 September 2015, Washington DC: United Nations.
- Vahidi, H. and Yan, W., 2016, How is an Informal Transport Infrastructure System Formed? Towards a Spatially Explicit Conceptual Model, Open Geospatial Data, Software and Standards, Vol. 1, No. 1.
- Valencia, S., Simon, D., Croese, S., Nordqvist, J., Oloko, M., Sharma, T., Buck, N.
- T. and Versace, I., 2019, Adapting the Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda to the City Level: Initial Reflections from a Comparative Research Project, International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 4–23.
- Vandemoortele, J., 2018, From Simple-Minded MDGs To Muddle-Headed SDGs, Development Studies Research, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 83–89.
- Worldpopulationreview.com, 2020a, Dar es Salaam Population 2020 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). Available online at https://worldpopulationreview.com/world- cities/dar-es-salaam-population.
- Worldpopulationreview.com, 2020b, Egypt Population 2020 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). Available online at https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/ egypt-population.
- Yousry, A. and Mekawy, H, 2012, Cairo: The Predicament of a Fragmented Metropolis, Journal of Urban Research, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 37–50.
References
Arfvidsson, H., Simon, D., Oloko, M. and Moodley, N., 2016, Engaging with and Measuring Informality in the Proposed Urban Sustainable Development Goal, African Geographical Review, Vol. 36, No. 1, pp.100–114.
Banks, N., Lombard, M. and Mitlin, D., 2019, Urban Informality as a Site of Critical Analysis, The Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 56, No. 2, pp. 223–238.
CAPMAS, 2017, Egyptian Population by Sex, Giza Governorate, Qism al-Agouza. Cairo: CAPMAS.
Caprotti, F., Cowley, R., Datta, A., Broto, V. C., Gao, E., Georgeson, L., Herrick, C., Odendaal, N. and Joss, S., 2017, The New Urban Agenda: Key Opportunities and Challenges for Policy and Practice, Urban Research and Practice, Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 367–378.
Croese, S., Green, C. and Morgan, G., 2020, Localising the Sustainable Development Goals Through the Lens of Urban Resilience: Lessons and Learnings from 100 Resilient Cities and Cape Town, Sustainability, Vol. 12, No. 2.
Eto, H. and Yamamoto, S., 2012, Methodology Transfers Between Social Sciences and Humanities in Relation to Natural Sciences, Technology and Government Policy, in. López-Varela, A., ed., Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Social Sciences and Knowledge Management, London, UK: InTechOpen, pp. 48–68.
Fraisl, D., Campbell, J., See, L., Wehn, U., … Masó, J., Penker, M. and Fritz, S., 2020, Mapping Citizen Science Contributions to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Sustainability Science. Vol. 15, pp. 1735–51.
Fritz, S., See, L., Carlson, T., … Parker, A., Weisspflug, M. and West, S., 2019, Citizen Science and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Nature Sustainability, Vol. 2, No. 10, pp. 922–930.
Gad, H., 2016, Neighboring Patterns between Formal and Informal Areas in Cairo, Case Study: Ard Al Lewaa and El Mohandeseen, Master’s thesis, Cairo University. General Organisation for Physical Planning (GOPP), 2012, Detailed Plan and Existing Situation Analysis, Unpublished PowerPoint presentation.
Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments, 2016, Roadmap for Localising the SDGs: Implementation and Monitoring At Subnational Level. Available online at https://www.uclg.org/sites/default/files/roadmap_for_localising_the_sdgs_0.pdf. Groenewald, L., Huchzermeyer, M., Kornienko, K., Tredoux, M., Rubin, M. and Raposo, I., 2013, Breaking Down the Binary: Meanings Of Informal Settlement In Southern African Cities, in: Bekker, S. and Fourchard, L., eds., Politics and Policies Governing Cities in Africa, Cape Town: HSRC Press, pp. 93–116.
Hansen, K. and Vaa, M., 2004, Reconsidering Informality: Perspectives from Urban Africa, Uppsala: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet.
Hassan, R., 2019, Creating A Safe Zone for Girls in Informal Areas in Cairo, Powerpoint presentation, Population Council.
Kangai, C., 2012, Social Research Methods in Higher Education: A Critical Analysis of Methodological Issues and Emerging Trends at the Zimbabwe Open University, in López-Varela, A., ed., Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to Social Sciences and Knowledge Management, London, UK: InTechOpen, pp.1–47. Kikwasi, G. and Mbuya, E., 2017, Vulnerability Analysis of Building Structures to Climate Change: The Case of Flooding in Informal Settlements in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Unpublished PhD thesis. Kumi, E., Arhin, A. and Yeboah, T., 2013, Can Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals Survive Neoliberalism? A Critical Examination of The Sustainable Development–Neoliberalism Nexus In Developing Countries, Environment, Development and Sustainability, Vol. 16, No. 3, pp. 539–554.
Kyessi, A. G., 2002, Community Participation in Urban Infrastructure Provision: Servicing Informal Settlements in Dar es Salaam, Dortmund: University of Dortmund.
Li, T., 2007, The Will to Improve: Governmentality, Development, And the Practice of Politics, Durham: Duke University Press.
Lusagalika, J. S., 2020, The Role and Influence of Media in Creating Environmental Awareness in Dar es Salaam Tanzania, Nokoko, Vol. 8, pp. 83–98.
Malonza, J. M. and Ortega, A. A., 2020, Fissures in Localising Urban Sustainability: The Case of Rwanda, GeoJournal. Available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10708-020-10239-8.
McGee, T. G., 1978, An Invitation To The ‘Ball’: Dress ‘Formal’ Or `Informal’?, in Rimmer, P. J. D., Drakakis-Smith, W. and McGee, T. G., eds., Food Shelter and Transport in Asia and the Pacific, Department of Human Geography, Monograph 12, Canberra: The Australian National University, pp. 3–28.
Nagati, O., 2016, The Danger of Romanticising Informality, in Angélil, M. M. and Malterre-Barthes, C., eds, Housing Cairo: The Informal Response, Berlin: Ruby Press. Nagati, O. and Stryker, B., 2021, Formal-Informal Interface: Comparative Analysis between Three Egyptian Cities, in Marrengane N. and Croese, S., eds, Reframing the Urban Challenge in Africa: Knowledge Co-Production from the South, London, UK: Routledge.
Nagati, O., El-Didi, A., Gad, H., Kihila, J., Mbuya, E. and Njavike, E., 2021 [forthcoming], Towards a Bottom-up Approach for Localising SDGs in African cities, Draft presented to CODESRIA, June 2020.
Oosterhof, P. D., 2018, Localising the Sustainable Development Goals to Accelerate Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, ADB: The Governance Brief, 33, pp. 1–14. Available online at https://www.adb.org/sites/ default/files/publication/472021/governance-brief-033-sdgs-implementation- 2030-agenda.pdf.
Roy A., 2005, Urban Informality: Toward an Epistemology of Planning, Journal of the American Planning Association, Vol. 71, No. 2, pp. 147–158.
Saleem, H. T., Likindikoki, S., Silberg, C., Mbwambo, J. and Latkin, C., 2021, Time-Space Constraints to HIV Treatment Engagement Among Women Who Use Heroin in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: A Time Geography Perspective, Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 268, 113379.
Sexsmith, K. and McMichael, P., 2015, Formulating the SDGs: Reproducing or Reimagining State-Centered Development?, Globalisations, Vol. 12, No. 4, pp. 581–596.
Simon, D., Arfvidsson, H., Anand, G., … Evans, L. M., Moodley, N. and Nyambuga, C., 2016, Developing and Testing the Urban Sustainable Development Goals targets and indicators – a Five–City Study, Environment and Urbanisation, Vol. 28, No. 1, pp. 49–63.
UCLG, 2014, How to Localize Targets and Indicators of the Post-2015 Agenda, UCLG Inputs for the Global Taskforce, Working Paper 14, November 2014. Available online at https://www.uclg.org/sites/default/files/localisation_targets_ indicator_web.pdf.
UN-Habitat, 2015, Habitat III Issue Paper 22 – Informal Settlements, Nairobi: UN Habitat.
United Nations (UN), 2015, Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 25 September 2015, Washington DC: United Nations.
Vahidi, H. and Yan, W., 2016, How is an Informal Transport Infrastructure System Formed? Towards a Spatially Explicit Conceptual Model, Open Geospatial Data, Software and Standards, Vol. 1, No. 1.
Valencia, S., Simon, D., Croese, S., Nordqvist, J., Oloko, M., Sharma, T., Buck, N.
T. and Versace, I., 2019, Adapting the Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda to the City Level: Initial Reflections from a Comparative Research Project, International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 4–23.
Vandemoortele, J., 2018, From Simple-Minded MDGs To Muddle-Headed SDGs, Development Studies Research, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 83–89.
Worldpopulationreview.com, 2020a, Dar es Salaam Population 2020 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). Available online at https://worldpopulationreview.com/world- cities/dar-es-salaam-population.
Worldpopulationreview.com, 2020b, Egypt Population 2020 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). Available online at https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/ egypt-population.
Yousry, A. and Mekawy, H, 2012, Cairo: The Predicament of a Fragmented Metropolis, Journal of Urban Research, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 37–50.