URBAN GROWTH AND INFORMALITY- AFRICAN CITIES IN ZIMBABWE

PRESENTATION BY: WISDOM SIZIBAACTING DIRECTOR ENGINEERING SERVICES(TP)

ZIRUP 2014 Annual School Kariba20-08-2014

FOCUS OF PRESENTATION• Urbanization and its role to the chaos• Urban growth• Informality• Infrastructure challenges in the core and design capacities

• Ruralisation of urban areas(RURBAN)• Reality and role of planners• Regularization and normalization• Way forward for planners and all.

FUTURE OF CITIES• Urbanization in sub-Saharan Africa of which Zimbabwe is an important part, is a reality and cannot be wished away

• UNCED (2005) observed that rates of urbanisation in Africa are the highest in the world.

• By 2025, more than half of the African population will be urban

CONT’D• Dramatic urbanisation over the past 2 decades has been concentrated in the developing countries.

• As rapid urbanisation has set in and formal economies have failed to cope, socio-economic conditions have progressively become unpalatable (poorly unfriendly)

• This has seen a large number of poor and unemployed people in the cities

• Urban failure- urban poverty, unemployment, pollution and congestion as indicators.

CONT’D• What is an urban area?

• What is urban growth?

• What is urban sprawl?

CONT’D• Madzingira et al (2002) asserts that the term urban area vary from region to region, e.g Israel non agricultural settlement, in Chile any center with urban characteristics ( Jones 1967), in Norway localities of 200 or more inhabitants

• Zimbabwe - designated urban area, which has 2500 inhabitants or a compact settlement pattern with the majority more than 50% of the population employed in non-agricultural activities(Madzingira et al 2002)

CONT’D• Urban growth is an urban area or a community in which the population of the area increases.

• The urbanisation process refers to much more than simply population growth, it involves changes in the economic, social and political structures.

• Urban sprawl describes the expansion of human populations from central urban areas into previously remote and rural areas.

MAJOR CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF URBAN GROWTH AND SPRAWL

CAUSES OF URBAN GROWTH –ZIM COMPACT GROWTH

SPRAWLED GROWTH

Population Growth • • Independence of decision • Speculation • Expectations of land appreciation

•

Land hunger attitude • Lack of affordable housing • Government and development policies

•

Lack of proper planning policies

•

Failure to enforce planning policies

•

Housing investment • Desperation i.e. RDCs •

CURRENT URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE AND

CHALLENGES• According to Gleeson (2007), urban infrastructure include all facilities that enable its function as a sub system of a city.

• It can be classified into either Physical/ Hard infrastructure or Social/ Soft infrastructure

• According to Konvitz (1985), urban infrastructure refer to built facilities and networks either above or below ground.

CONT’D

Major groups of Infrastructurea)Utilities- gas, electricity, water supply,

sewerage, waste collection and disposalsb)Public Works- roads, bridges, dams, canals,

ports and airports, subways and railwaysc)Community facilities- prisons, schools,

parks, recreation, hospitals, librariesd)Telecommunications- telephone, internet,

televisions, satellites, cables, broadband

CONT’D

General State of Water Infrastructure Provision in the Urban Areas

• The water treatment works are operating between 50-60% capacity in most local authorities

• The pumping equipment and dosing equipment is now absolute

• 60% of the water pipeline network is now due for replacement or> older than 40 years

• 60% on the water meters are more than 15 years old and now under-reading hence under billing.

CONT’D

General State of the wastewater Infrastructure

• Collapsed outfall sewer trunk mains due to age and lack of maintenance

• Collapsed overhead sewer trunk mains

• Generally wastewater treatment works are operating between 50-60% of capacity

• The available capacities are overloaded by more than 30% on average

CONT’D

General State of the wastewater Infrastructure

CONT’D

• General State of the wastewater Infrastructure

CONT’D

General State of the wastewater Infrastructure

CONT’D

General state of public transport

• Lack of capital for vehicle replacement.

• Quality of service is compromised by overcrowding.

• Too many operators resulting in lack of accountability.

• Accidents caused mainly by public transport vehicles

• Congestion

CONT’D

General state of public transport

• Lack of funding from financial institutions.

• Lack of institutional framework for the management and delivery of urban public transport.

• Pollution

• Deteriorating public transport infrastructure and roads

• Enforcement problems-ZRP and municipal police.

CONT’D

•General state of public transport

Confusion at Herbert Chitepo Street/L.Takawira Avenue

CONT’D

• General state of public transport

Mahatshula Kombi Accident

RURALISATION OF URBAN CENTRES

• Some local authorities have prepared Master Plans which cover areas outside their boundaries.

• This was a result of land need and anticipation of incorporation.

• RDCs are now implementing the Master Plan provisions through creation of small urban areas (RURBAN)

CONT’D

• Bulawayo city has a population of 655 675 in terms of the 2012 census which used the de facto method.

• Upper Rangemore and Lower Rangemore areas which was earmarked for incorporation has a total of 3 283,6 hectares and a potential of 90 299 housing units which can accommodate a population of 451 495.

BULAWAYO MAP SHOWING INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS ALONG BOUNDARIES

Emthunzini

Mbundane

Brick making

CONT’D

Mbundane Township- Bulawayo

RURALISATION OF URBAN CENTRES

Emthunzini Township- Bulawayo

RURALISATION OF URBAN CENTRESFactory in Waterford- Bulawayo

RURALISATION OF URBAN CENTRES

Harare western boundary

Harare Rurban Zone

RURALISATION OF URBAN CENTRESA typical informal settlement

WHAT HAS COME OF TODAY’S CITIES

• Lack of potable water supply system.

• Lack of sanitation system.• Pollution• Environmental problems• Slums• Congestion in the city• Influx of the informal- vending

URBAN INFORMALITY

• There is greater concerns over the informal hyper growth of cities.

• Informal economy is the people’s spontaneous and creative response to the state’s incapacity to satisfy the basic needs of the impoverished masses (Roy, 2005)

CONT’D

• Informality permeates all aspects of the urban systems including housing and land occupation (Roy 2003), commerce, production and work (Maloney 1999) and even the public sphere and political processes (Mizstal 2001)

CONT’D

• Informality accounts for the provision of three quarters of basic needs in the majority of African cities ( Simone 2005) and 60% of all urban jobs are in the informal sector (UN-HABITAT, 2010)

CONT’D

5TH Avenue in Bulawayo closed to accommodate the informal sector

CONT’D

5TH Avenue in Bulawayo closed to accommodate the informal sector

CONT’D

Vending over spills in Bulawayo CBD

CHALLENGES OF INFORMAL SETTLEMENT IN BULAWAYO

• The informal settlements are a headache• They are outside the city’s boundary• They have no access to potable water• They have no access to sewer reticulation

• They have no access to solid waste management.

• They congest city health facilities• Their children attend city schools• There is open air defacation

MANAGEMENT OF THE INFORMAL SETTLEMENT IN

BULAWAYO• There are some high level engagements to attend to the issue where incorporation is key.

• The developments are to the interest of Bulawayo City Council.

CONT’D

Role of Council in developing and management of SMEs

• Creating an enabling environment• Streamlining regulatory frame work• Creation of management committees to self manage trading zones

• Facilitating access to information and advise

• Facilitating access to markets and procument.

• Facilitating access to finance.

CONT’D

• Provision of physical infrastructure and its management

• Facilitating training in entrepreneurship skills, vocational training, skills development management.

• Creating synergies with industry and the labour environment

• Facilitating access to new technology• Encouraging and development of smart partnerships and joint ventures

• Capacity building and institutional strengthening• Rental, Taxation systems.

CONT’D

Informal Sector Fact sheet• 551 Designated sites throughout the city

• 7 404 Vending bays• $92 209 Potential monthly incomeGoods on sale• Fruits and vegetables, farm produce, flowers, curios, needlework, clothing, odds and ends, tyres, electronics, cell phones, uniforms, motor spares.

RESPONSE OF PLANNERS TO RURBANISATION OF THE ZIMBABWEAN CITIES

• Authorities have a fetish about informality

• Fueled by an obsession with urban modernity

• What we are seeing now is not our desired city, largely inspired by western nations of modernity.

• Planners and authority in the defence line to defend a modern city.

CONT’D

• Desire for an urban modernity based on a concept of formal order which cannot exist with the disorder and spatial unruliness of informality.

• Informality is seen as an abomination that needs to be “converted” dislocated or annihilated.

• It has been my prayer as a planner that informality comes to pass so that I can plan for order.

WAY FORWARD• Informality is inevitable and its eradication is impossible (institutionalised)

• Normalisation as a response to urban informal livelihoods in urban Zimbabwe.

• Depolitisation of these settlements• Urban areas are under siege from the marauding desperate rural areas which should be controlled.

• Planners must acknowledge and let alone accept the realities.

Cont’d• All cities must have Master Plans• Peri-urban (Rurban Areas) must have concept plans to link them with urban plans

• Need for urban councils to engage with developers in the rurban areas/ possible corporation in the provision of offsite infrastructure (treatment works etc)

• Incorporation processes to be persuaded aggressively so as to attend to peri-urban plights.

• Need to move with speed to regularise regularisable settlements.

LEAP FROG PLANNING