Working Paper 43 - Energy Sector Development in Africa

The important and wide-ranging role of energy in the development process is well known andit needs no retelling here. However, suffice it to state that there is a strong feedback relationshipbetween the energy sector and the national economy. Energy demand, supply and pricing haveenormous impact on social and economic development and the living standards and overall qualityof life of the population. On the other hand the economic structure and the changes in that structureas well as the prevailing macroeconomic conditions are key determinants of energy demand andsupply. Furthermore, energy affects environmental quality through deforestation associated withunsustainable biomass energy dependence and greenhouse gas emission from fossil fuel use resultingin global warming.Prior to 1973, the rate at which energy consumption increased closely followed the rate atwhich the economy expanded. Rapid economic growth and steadily rising income and higher livingstandards combined with the long term declining trend in energy prices to produce rapidly risingglobal energy demand. Until the emergence of the high cost energy era in the post 1973 era,relatively cheap and abundant energy was a key feature of rapid industrialization and economicprogress. Indeed, commercial energy use remains a key factor in human development. This is despitethe global de-coupling of energy demand-economic growth relationship in the post – 1970 period,triggered by the onset of a new era of more expensive energy associated with the quadrupling of oilprice increases between 1973 and 1974, and further price escalation in 1979 and 1980.Beyond the low level of energy consumption per capita, and unsustainable over-dependenceon bio-mass (wood-fuel), Africa is faced with enormous problems in the quest for sustainableenergy development. For the purpose of addressing these problems effectively, we can summarizethe fundamental energy question facing Africa as: providing and maintaining widespread access ofthe population to reliable and affordable supplies of environmentally cleaner energy to meet therequirements of rapid economic growth and improved living standards. Two sets of factors complicatethe solutions to this critical question. First is the difficult initial energy and economic conditions inmuch of the region. These are broadly defined by the significant deterioration in energy infrastructure,inadequate and unreliable supply of commercial energy to end users despite the enormous untappedenergy resources in the region, and significant inefficiency in energy use. The energy constraints havebeen exacerbated by difficult domestic economic and social conditions. These are defined broadly by, low per capita income, high incidence of poverty, weak economic growth and growth collapsein several cases, stagnating or declining investment (energy inclusive) and weak though improvingdomestic macroeconomic conditions, social conflict and weak governance in public enterprises incharge of energy. Second, there is the global pressure driven by sustainable human development totackle the increasingly significant adverse local, regional and global environmental impact of energysector development. This will accelerate the demand for cleaner energy and the associated energyresource development. The search for a sustainable energy sector development will therefore remainan important issue in Africa as well as in the rest of the world. The paper presents a broad butsystematic discussion of the main issues concerning sustainable energy development in Africa.The structure of the paper is as follows. In section 2 the socio-economic context of theproblem is discussed. In section 3 we present an overview of the developments in the energy sectorin the post 1970 period with emphasis on the sub-regional perspective. This is followed by ananalysis of the constraints to energy sector development in section 4. The paper explores some ofthe key issues and strategies for achieving the goal of sustainable energy development in Africa insection 5. The conclusions are presented in section 6.

Understanding walkability in the Libyan urban space: policies, perceptions and smart design for sustainable Tripoli

Walkability in civic and public spaces in Libyan cities is challenging due to the lack of accessibility design, informal merging into car traffic, and the general absence of adequate urban and space planning. The lack of accessible and pedestrian-friendly public spaces in Libyan cities has emerged as a major concern for the government if it is to develop smart and sustainable spaces for the 21st century. A walkable urban space has become a driver for urban development and redistribution of land use to ensure pedestrian and walkable routes between sites of living and workplaces. The characteristics of urban open space in the city centre play a main role in attracting people to walk when attending their daily needs, recreation and daily sports. There is significant gap in the understanding of perceptions, feasibility and capabilities of Libyan urban space to accommodate enhance or support the smart design of a walkable pedestrian-friendly environment that is safe and accessible to everyone. The paper aims to undertake observations of walkability and walkable space in the city of Tripoli as a benchmark for Libyan cities; assess the validity and consistency of the seven principal aspects of smart design, safety, accessibility and 51 factors that affect the walkability in open urban space in Tripoli, through the analysis of 10 local urban spaces experts (town planner, architect, transport engineer and urban designer); and explore user groups’ perceptions of accessibility in walkable spaces in Libyan cities through questionnaires. The study sampled 200 respondents in 2015-16. The results of this study are useful for urban planning, to classify the walkable urban space elements which affect to improve the level of walkability in the Libyan cities and create sustainable and liveable urban spaces

Walkability in historic urban spaces: testing the safety and security in Martyrs' Square in Tripoli

Much of the built environment design literature focuses on a composite of walkable spaces variables such as density, diversity, and destination accessibility. One of the most effective factors in walkability is “safety and security”. There is an evident gap in understanding the perceived ability of Libyan public spaces to support walkability. This paper aims to investigate the effectiveness of “walkability” in traditional Libyan urban spaces and analyse the relationship between walking, a safe and secure environment, and its impact on a heritage site in Tripoli city centre. The perceived personal safety of 140 users of the heritage site “Martyrs' Square” were measured; this research is studying the quality of environment and users’ interaction with their environmental issues relating to the study area. Mixed methods were used in this research: this study used both quantitative and qualitative methods to gather information; the quantitative took the form of a questionnaire; and the qualitative took the form of observations. Analysis of quantitative data was conducted with SPSS software; the survey was conducted from August 2016 to September 2016. The results of this study are useful for urban planning, to classify the walkable urban space elements, which could improve the level of walkability in Libyan cities and create sustainable and liveable urban spaces

Water demand management in Mediterranean regions

Water sustainability needs a balance between demand and availability: 1) Water demand management: demand may be managed by suppliers and regulations responsible persons, using measures like invoicing, consumptions measurement and users education in water conservation measures; 2) Augmentation of water supply: availibility may be augmented by infrastructural measures, waste water reuse, non-conventional resources and losses reduction. Water Demand Management is about achieving a reduction in the use of water resources, normally through increased efficiency of water application. The main objective of this paper is the application of these concepts to Mediterranean regions.

Salford postgraduate annual research conference (SPARC) 2012 proceedings

These proceedings bring together a selection of papers from the 2012 Salford Postgraduate Annual Research Conference (SPARC). They reflect the breadth and diversity of research interests showcased at the conference, at which over 130 researchers from Salford, the North West and other UK universities presented their work. 21 papers are collated here from the humanities, arts, social sciences, health, engineering, environment and life sciences, built environment and business