InfoPoint conference: Unlocking the potential of secondary cities for Africa’s sustainable urbanisation

Rapid urbanisation is largely taking place in secondary cities. There are nearly 900 secondary cities in Africa. They play a variety of roles in national and regional development, yet secondary cities are ill-prepared, financially poor, institutionally weak and facing multiple challenges to exercise their mandate and contribute to the sustainable transition in the region. 

An in-depth analysis in 3 cities (Arua, Koudougou and Nkayi) provides lessons learnt and proposes an agenda for the development of secondary cities in Africa. This discussion workshop will give a brief overview of the results of this study followed by an interactive discussion with experts on the growing importance of secondary cities in Africa’s urbanisation and the potential avenues to strengthen their role in sustainable, inclusive and environmentally-conscious urban development. What role and function do secondary cities have in the wider development context?

Speakers

• Lars Gronvald, Head of the urban development section, Directorate-General for International Partnerships, Unit F4 - Sustainable Transport and Urban Development
• Firdaous Ousidhaum, Special Adviser of the UCLG Secretary General
• Claudio Acioly Jr, Senior Manager and Team Leader, ACCIONA Ingenieria
• Stephanie Loose, Senior Global Shelter Cluster Coordinator, Division of Resilience and Solutions, UNHCR
• Moderated by Carley Pennink, Assistant Professor, Governance and Strategic-Action Planning and PPPs, Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies

Language of conference: English and French

Language of Q&A session: English and French

Registration

Online participation (Webex)