Guma, P.K. orcid.org/0000-0001-8511-5664 (2022) On tackling infrastructure: the need to learn from marginal cities and populations in the Global South. Journal of the British Academy, 10. pp. 29-37. ISSN 2052-7217
Abstract
Due to complex and adverse effects of rapid urbanisation, conventional infrastructure networks in the Global South tend to be stretched in their capacity to deliver. Over the years, different studies have examined how diverse populations manage to operate successfully (albeit with constraints and limitations) despite limits on formal networks. However, most attempts have studied large and central cities at the expense of small and marginal cities. In this article, I make a case for learning from marginal cities and populations in the Global South. I highlight the need to understand better how the urban poor in smaller and marginal cities not only navigate and negotiate the absence and inadequacy of formal infrastructure, but also put together a semblance of viable life through modest, creative and sometimes improvised infrastructural and technological interventions. This, I argue is important for drawing appropriate lessons for tackling infrastructure, particularly in an age where sustainable solutions to urban and infrastructural challenges are bound to emanate not just from technical experts, but also from directly affected populations themselves.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2022 The author(s). This is an open access article licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 Unported License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) |
Keywords: | Infrastructure; technology; cities; urban poor; marginality; Global South |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Research Institutes Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 01 Dec 2023 16:23 |
Last Modified: | 02 Dec 2023 00:31 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | British Academy |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.5871/jba/010.029 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:205866 |