Spatial Analysis of Intra-Urban Land Use Dynamics in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Case of Addis Ababa (Ethiopia)

Abstract

Currently, circa 30% of the population in sub-Saharan Africa resides in cities, and this figure is expected to double in 2040. The recent literature describes the urban expansion processes of African cities in much detail. However, the urbanization wave in Africa also leads to important intra-urban land use dynamics, which have important consequences on the quality of life within existing cities, which has received less attention. This study aims to contribute to these information gaps by (1) analyzing the extent of the urban land use conversion in contrasting urban locations using satellite images for physical criteria-based classifications and (2) assessing the potential consequences of these intra-urban conversions on the quality of life. Intra-urban land use changes were documented based on satellite imagery for the period 2002–2020. Based on some representative attributes, Addis Ababa city was selected for the case study. Urban land use dynamics and population density changes were examined based on the selected case study neighborhoods and randomly identified land parcels in the city, respectively. Urban development strategies and programs that emerged over recent decades had caused intra-urban land use dynamics, which brought significant population density changes. Moreover, these changes have caused an unbalanced distribution of socio-economic amenities across the city.

Urban Land Monetization-Driven Land Use Orientations: An Insight from Land Lease Prices in Addis Ababa

“…This is also in line with the production of space-related theories [25] that the state as an influencing actor in urban land produces urban space that ultimately leads to gentrification, which results in demolition of high-rent-gap locations [4]. Therefore, such a high land rent gap at the center compared to the periphery causes the poor and the middle class to move away from the center, where buildup expansion exceeds the urban amenity distribution [26], which is also a challenge to urban poor residents [45]. Exceptional larger land parcel sizes were also observed towards the southern parts of the city, recognized as an industrial and warehouse zone.…”

“…They are built up within available open spaces and on forest-covered hilltops, which are left open in the city's master plan (see Figure 18). In general, condominiums are the farthest residential structures located towards the periphery of the city, where basic urban functions are comparably less developed [26]. Given that the land zonation was determined based on the distance from the city center to the land price contrast, it is clear that the land use distribution is affected by this distance (Figure 17).…”

“…They are built up within available open spaces and on forest-covered hilltops, which are left open in the city's master plan (see Figure 18). In general, condominiums are the farthest residential structures located towards the periphery of the city, where basic urban functions are comparably less developed [26]. Nonresidential land uses such as commercial buildups are situated towards the center, while the industrial and warehouse land uses are located in the middle and periphery regions of the city.…”

“…The complex city nature could be captured through a concentric circl ceptualization based on Burgess' model, who divided a complex city into cles to describe land uses from the center to the suburbs [1,21]. Similar to dis land prices, access to socioeconomic amenities decreases towards the ur [26], and less powerful rentiers settle in locations that are commensurate The land use model application varies depending on the age, size, and locational setting of the city. Concentric cities are smaller and older, while polycentric cities are larger and trending in urban development [21,22].…”

“…The complex city nature could be captured through a concentric circle for rent conceptualization based on Burgess' model, who divided a complex city into concentric circles to describe land uses from the center to the suburbs [1,21]. Similar to distance-induced land prices, access to socioeconomic amenities decreases towards the urban periphery [26], and less powerful rentiers settle in locations that are commensurate with their bid rent capacity [27]. The space production (number and size of land parcels supplied and their respective locations) is also an important factor in geographical theory [21].…”