Abstract:In Kenya road building, widely viewed as an ‘unqualified human good’, is closely linked to an ‘Africa Rising’ narrative. In this paper the author argues that road building is an attempt to assert political authority derived from a longstanding developmentalist impulse, one in which private accumulation and spectacular public works go hand in hand. In light of massive infrastructural transformations, the author develops a conceptualisation of the right to the city: what is needed is a radical understanding of t… Show more
“…The two dominant areas of infrastructure disruption that emerged were mobility constraints and unreliable water supply—perhaps not the first concerns one might expect in the ‘creative city’: you're not just like walking on the street and like dipping into a coffee shop or walking down the street and ‘oh I'm going to go shopping there’. It's like you have to plan and I'm going to there , and that's where I'm going to get in my taxi and then go there (Dale).Mobility infrastructure within African cities is a highly important feature of place; it is the point at which the private car—a quintessential signifier of modernity in developing countries—and the colonially configured road space converge (Robinson, 2006; Graham and Thrift, 2007; Pieterse, 2008; Manji, 2015). In Nairobi, this manifests itself in the colossal traffic jams, its potholed roads and the heavy air pollution.…”
Section: Infrastructure Disruption In ‘Silicon Savannah’mentioning
Debates around urbanization, infrastructure disruption and the creative class rarely appear alongside each other in research on African cities. This article connects these different narratives, which are currently exerting their influence on the future direction of these cities. The economic value of the creative class is that their work centres on innovation—a quality seen as essential to ‘new‐economy’ urban growth. Quality of place (that which makes ‘New York New York’) is said to attract the creative class to certain cities, as lifestyle amenities are valued as much as employment opportunities. Nairobi is an example of an African city currently attracting both Kenyan and expatriate creative class workers, particularly in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector. In this article we take Richard Florida's creative class theory as a departure point to offer insights into why this group chooses to live in Nairobi and to describe Nairobi's quality of place, with a particular focus on infrastructure disruption. The case study reveals that Nairobi's quality of place differs fundamentally from the normative attributes prescribed by creative class theory and, in some instances, it is considered to be highly frustrating and unattractive.
“…The two dominant areas of infrastructure disruption that emerged were mobility constraints and unreliable water supply—perhaps not the first concerns one might expect in the ‘creative city’: you're not just like walking on the street and like dipping into a coffee shop or walking down the street and ‘oh I'm going to go shopping there’. It's like you have to plan and I'm going to there , and that's where I'm going to get in my taxi and then go there (Dale).Mobility infrastructure within African cities is a highly important feature of place; it is the point at which the private car—a quintessential signifier of modernity in developing countries—and the colonially configured road space converge (Robinson, 2006; Graham and Thrift, 2007; Pieterse, 2008; Manji, 2015). In Nairobi, this manifests itself in the colossal traffic jams, its potholed roads and the heavy air pollution.…”
Section: Infrastructure Disruption In ‘Silicon Savannah’mentioning
Debates around urbanization, infrastructure disruption and the creative class rarely appear alongside each other in research on African cities. This article connects these different narratives, which are currently exerting their influence on the future direction of these cities. The economic value of the creative class is that their work centres on innovation—a quality seen as essential to ‘new‐economy’ urban growth. Quality of place (that which makes ‘New York New York’) is said to attract the creative class to certain cities, as lifestyle amenities are valued as much as employment opportunities. Nairobi is an example of an African city currently attracting both Kenyan and expatriate creative class workers, particularly in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector. In this article we take Richard Florida's creative class theory as a departure point to offer insights into why this group chooses to live in Nairobi and to describe Nairobi's quality of place, with a particular focus on infrastructure disruption. The case study reveals that Nairobi's quality of place differs fundamentally from the normative attributes prescribed by creative class theory and, in some instances, it is considered to be highly frustrating and unattractive.
“…It engaged with these diverse actors throughout the mapping process to get feedback and build an understanding of the data and its standardised format (General Transit Feed Specification) as well as to encourage use of the data to influence policy and planning. The project was motivated by a desire to raise the profile of public transport in Kenya where a strong focus on highway building for cars was under way without regard for the majority of people who use matatus as the main form of motorised transport (Klopp, 2012;Manji, 2015). Thus, mapping was part of a specific prourban public transport advocacy agenda, influenced by a growing global civic hacker movement aimed at improving passenger interaction with public transport by providing high quality information through apps and maps (Townsend 2013;McHugh, 2013).…”
Often called paratransit because of their flexible stops, schedules and routes, minibuses make up the bulk of public transport in African cities. Despite their ubiquity and importance, these systems are poorly understood by transportation planners who tend to focus on large-scale urban infrastructure projects such as highways, commuter rail or bus rapid transit systems. The assumption within much of this planning is that these minibus systems are barriers to change and will become at most secondary "feeder" buses within large-scale projects, but structured plans detailing this vision are lacking. This paper argues that frequent failure to collect data and value important paratransit systems as a critical part of transportation in their own right is deeply problematic from the point of view of equity, access and inclusive and effective planning. We ask whether the growing number of bottom up mapping projects of minibus systems can disrupt this status quo. By comparing two mapping projects, Digital Matatus in Nairobi and the Mapa Dos Chapas in Maputo, we find that inclusive, collaborative mapping can help render these minibuses more visible in planning and provoke more grounded and inclusive "planning conversations" on multimodal integration, passenger information and minibus upgrading, all key but relatively marginalised aspects of creating accessible, low emission, high quality and safe public transport in African cities.
“…As the project delays illustrate, this role is not a simple one: the state seems unable to steer process outcomes in such a complex project . The reasons for the inability of the Kenyan state (so far) to develop the project, in spite of high-level support including the presidency, can be found in the fragmented nature of planning in Kenya and contradictory interests within the Kenyan state (Manji, 2015). While the MIC was deeply involved in advancing its vision for the project and committed to starting construction fast, its expertise is in ICT and not in urban planning or land development.…”
Section: Buff Er Zone Repulsion and Att Raction: Displacement Chainsmentioning
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