Cities can bring well-being and prosperity to millions of people if they are well designed, efficiently governed, and offer economic freedom. One billion new residents are expected in African cities by 2050; many of these cities are beset by corruption, poor management, poverty, and barriers to markets. A new, innovative approach to urban development is needed to ensure that African cities lead to human flourishing. The Africa Urban Lab (AUL) at the African School of Economics (Zanzibar) will host an innovative program of higher education, training, and research targeted to city builders, urban policy makers, and researchers to help restore the historical link between cities and human flourishing in Africa.
The evidence shows that reducing barriers to entrepreneurship will help cities realize their potential economic dynamism. Charter cities, or new cities with autonomous and decentralized governance, can avoid the many logistical and political pitfalls that pre-existing cities face: they are ideal ‘laboratories’ for reform. The AUL seeks to equip the next generation of urban specialists and public officials to positively contribute to the development of charter cities with greater opportunities for entrepreneurship and to bring their talents to bear on urban growth challenges in existing cities.
The AUL will launch a professional development Diploma in Urban Development (2024) and an MSc in Urban Development (2025). The AUL will disseminate frontier research that fills current knowledge gaps in urban governance, urban planning, urban finance, and urban economics to the public, private, and academic spheres. The AUL’s support and engagement with its graduates will ensure they become a valuable asset as the region’s urban revolution unfolds over the coming decades. In addition, the AUL will facilitate the hosting of public events to contribute to a wider ecosystem of stakeholders committed to economic freedom, secure property rights, and decentralized authority.
