Global Urban Debates
Housing Policy Must Focus on People Rather Than Products
Bogotá is rethinking housing as a driver of urban transformation. In this interview, Vanessa Velasco Bernal, Chief Secretary of Bogotá’s District Secretariat for Habitat, explains how the city connects housing, financial inclusion and urban revitalisation to create better access to opportunities.
Waste Pickers Are Essential to Inclusive Green and Circular Economies
Waste pickers are vital to circular economies and climate action, yet remain largely invisible. Sonia Dias explores how climate change affects their work, especially that of women.
Local Partnerships, Global Impact: Lessons from Lamspringe and Amahlathi
The Sustainable Development Goals may be global commitments, but their implementation depends on local action Taibat Lawanson writes. In Africa’s rapidly urbanising cities, empowered local governments are essential to turn the SDGs into tangible improvements in people’s everyday lives – from housing and transport to basic services, resilience and inclusive governance.
Africa’s Urban Future Depends on Local Action: Why Strong Local Governments are Key to Achieving the SDGs
The Sustainable Development Goals may be global commitments, but their implementation depends on local action Taibat Lawanson writes. In Africa’s rapidly urbanising cities, empowered local governments are essential to turn the SDGs into tangible improvements in people’s everyday lives – from housing and transport to basic services, resilience and inclusive governance.
No Ready-Made Solutions: How African Cities Are Adapting Land Value Capture to Local Realities
As African cities grow, public investments are rapidly increasing land values. But who benefits from this uplift? From Kigali to Stellenbosch, cities are adapting land value capture to local realities – showing that successful urban finance tools are built through context, experimentation and political commitment, not copied from elsewhere.
Financing Africa’s Urban Future
As Africa’s cities expand, the financing challenge is becoming a governance challenge: cities need more reliable revenues, better access to capital and stronger tools to turn growth into inclusive, resilient development.