City-to-city learning in urban strategic planning in Southern Africa: unearthing an underground knowledge economy.

Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Sciences. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2016.Despite international evidence strongly suggesting the need for urban strategic planning, most African governments still continue to under-invest in the establishment of bottom-up strategic planning frameworks. The seriousness of the consequences of such inadequate urban strategic planning responses and ineffective governance in developing economies has been flagged by the World Economic Forum (WEF), identifying it as a key global risk in 2015. What is of particular interest in their analysis however is the observation that governments of rapidly growing cities make very little time for learning from other cities to improve their own planning processes. Whilst the above assertion may be true, targeted research on city-to-city learning conducted predominantly in the global North is showing that cities are in fact quietly forming an international web-work of learning representing an almost invisible, underground knowledge economy. Given the highly conspicuous void in empirical research into city-to-city learning in urban strategic planning processes in the (southern) African context, this doctoral study focuses on a United Cities and Local Government (UCLG) case study using the experience of three African cities, Durban in South Africa, Otjiwarongo in Namibia and Mzuzu in Malawi, to shed light on the phenomenon of city-to-city learning. In particular, the research explores what insights are offered by the eThekwini Municipality’s mentorship program with these selected Namibian and Malawian municipalities that begin to inform contemporary learning theory in southern Africa. Rejecting a grand meta-narrative in favor of a more pragmatist, hands-on and bottom-up, context specific interpretation of social reality; the research adopts a multi-conceptual lens by drawing from the urban planning and organizational learning disciplines. The study utilized a mixed methods approach with both qualitative (key informant interviews, focus group discussions and observation) as well as quantitative (census survey of a total of 34 respondents) data integrated into the study. The study yields a set of illuminating results which begins to challenge currently held definitions and learning terminology. More importantly, a learning model is developed with five clearly delineated stages in the city-to-city learning process. In addition, the research is able to distil the valuable lessons emerging from the in-depth case study to propose a broad, but coherent learning framework, with a set of strategic recommendations to guide future city-to-city learning processes. These recommendations which have been shared with the international learning stakeholders are already beginning to transform the learning landscape in southern Africa and beyond

Encounters at the Water Point – An Ethnography of the Travelling Model of Community-based Water Management and its Application to Rural Water Supply in Namibia

The study takes an anthropological perspective on a globalized political environment – more particularly on the fields of global environmental governance and development cooperation and their interplay with national and local arenas and actors. I offer an anthropological account of the rise of the global environmental governance agenda, of the international arenas where it has been generating debates and joint decisions, and of their consequences for national politics and local resource management regimes in the Global South. Furthermore, this study contributes observations and findings on how ideas, discourses, and processes at different scales affect the emergence and change of local institutions. The connecting thread underlying my account is based on the way in which natural resource management concepts and models emerge on the international scene of water experts, policy-makers, and practitioners, and how the models travel between international, national, regional, and local scales, being translated and transformed during their travelling. Having applied the concept of travelling models previously elaborated by a group of anthropologists and other social scientists to my particular case, to the field work I did, and to the documents I collected, I draw some conclusions from my own experiment, following ethnographically a travelling model of community-based water management across scales and between locations. The main contribution of the study at hand is to devise and refine ways of grasping the dynamics behind discourses and blueprint-like models at different scales, conceptually and methodologically. My account serves to demonstrate the potential of the travelling models approach in ethnography and anthropological analysis, especially by focusing on the travelling of a particular model for local behaviour in situations of connectivity between actors from different spheres and scales, and in interactions of representatives of the state with civil society organizations and of both of these with local individuals and groups. This study meets the challenge of not only concentrating on the local consequences of global tendencies as others have done before, but also of applying the toolbox of anthropological methods to scenarios where ‘the global’ becomes tangible, and to the spaces of connectivity, movement, and friction in between the different scales. In so doing, the aim has been to also test the theoretical paradigm of ‘travelling models’ based on researchers from STS and ANT, and applied to other ethnographic contexts more recently by a group of mainly Germany-based anthropologists, and to identify some of the advantages and limitations it has to offer. I demonstrate by an exemplary case how such a standardized model for the management of rural water supply, prescribed by the state and introduced at the water points by a group of external actors, emerges from and is influenced by discourses and actors at the national and global level. For Namibia, a new set of standardized management institutions was introduced in a blueprint-like manner to groups of water users through a national reform programme and through various development interventions starting in the 1990s. My analysis focuses on institutions that regulate the management and supply of water in Namibia’s rural areas, and more particularly in Kunene Region – and in similar ways in many other countries in the Global South. The historical perspective provided on prominent ideas and concepts in the water-management sector in the colonial past informs the account of present-day water management institutions and practice, because these historical concepts have shaped the emergence and travelling of the community based water management model in question. Key findings The establishment of the Namibian community-based water management (CBWM) model is shaped by global discourses which 1) conceive of water as a scarce resource per se; 2) have led to approaches of water governance following the idea of a ‘hydraulic mission’, augmenting water supply as part of a state-run ‘environmental engineering’ approach; 3) having realized that the hydraulic mission had failed to lead to increased sustainable water supply, have advocated ideas of participation, decentralization, and demand-orientation as guarantors of sustainability and equality, as well as of cost efficiency in the realm of water management. These ideas are actively propagated by NGOs and state actors in Namibia and elsewhere within the framework of community meetings, institutional blueprints, and training guidelines. The decentralization program’s success is measured by the same actors implementing and monitoring the CBWM model, and they evaluate their achievements according to the extent to which the water-point user associations implement their own developed rules and water point constitutions. Pending further analysis I would state from the information gathered among established WPAs that the CBWM-related component did not quite lead to the outcomes that the Ministry would have called for. The major criteria, defined by the WPA model constitution, which the national water administration usually takes into account when assessing the functionality of a WPA, include regular WPC and WPA meetings, regular collection of user fees; financial and management-related reporting, and the adherence to management plans and budgets adopted upon establishment of the WPA. Many of these criteria were not met in most of the places I visited. At the same time, however, only a few of the WPAs visited reported any shortcomings in terms of accessibility of sufficient quantities of water. In a nutshell, water in these places seems to be managed in a generally reliable and satisfactory way for local users, even though WPAs do not comply with the official management rules introduced by the state. That is not to say that other important criteria, such as satisfactory water quality, or ‘fairness’ (in terms of the water fees postulated by the state’s facilitators and by the user groups) are being met. The situation reveals the picture of a complex and costly administration and implementation process around a model for which it has not been established whether its guidelines suit the living conditions of the rural water users. While one of the underlying motivations of reforming the rural water supply sector starting in the 1990s was to mitigate the detrimental effects that a century of colonization and Apartheid rule had had on the society and the environment, questions such as for instance: ‘Is there any distributional justice in regard to the access to water?’, or ‘Is water affordable for all?’, are not currently priority matters of discussion in Namibia’s water sector or politics. To some extent, this might have to do with the fact that the actors involved have significant vested interest in the decentralization program continuing as it is, such as retaining employment in the public administration, decentralized presence in the local communities, political influence, and voters’ consent; yet it would be worthwhile to (re-)evaluate these and other aspects of the CBWM measures. In the meantime, the debate around the human right to water and sanitation is ongoing. Even five years after this right was officially declared by the UN in July 2010, its supporters still claim that generally not enough is being done, or not enough of the right things are being done, in order to enforce it worldwide. Another continuing debate is the longstanding confrontation and sometimes probably fruitful engagement of supporters of the idea that water as a public, common good should be managed publicly in order to ensure equitable access and sustainability, and proponents of the idea of water as an economic good and commodity, which ought to be managed based on commercial principles. The fifteen years of global action for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) between 2001 and 2015 included the target of halving the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation which shaped many of the discourses this study sheds light on. The 193 UN member states who adopted the new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) following up on the MDGs in September 2015 have decided to include an independent water-related goal which aims to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by 2030. I hope that some of the content discussed here may be of interest not only to scientists, but also to people working in and on the water-sector in other ways towards achieving this SDG

An exploration of the care needs of frail older persons in Namibia: perspectives and experiences of formal and informal caregivers

The adequate care of older persons is a major global concern and countries are examining ways to respond to these needs, especially the needs of frail older persons in the care environment. Important strides have been made in developed countries but progress has been slow in less developed countries in the Global South and limited information exists on the care needs of frail older persons and lived experiences of formal and informal caregivers. This thesis examines the care needs of frail older persons in Namibia. Namibia has only recently been liberated from colonial rule by Germany and apartheid South Africa. During this time black communities were disenfranchised, resource-scarce and living under poor conditions. For older persons, this meant unequal treatment, social exclusion and denial of access to decent care. The aim of this study was to provide an in-depth understanding of the needs of frail older persons in the care environment in Namibia by examining the lived experiences of caregivers and analysing policy. Using a qualitative methodology, the study collected primary data from formal and informal caregivers based on semi-structured interviews and focus groups. The data analysis relied mainly on coding strategies under Atlas-ti and qualitative content analysis. The secondary data were collected from legislation, government policy documents, journals and other public reports. The finding revealed that Namibia's history has entrenched the current situation of unmet needs of frail older persons, exacerbated by inadequate policy protection. These limitations were highlighted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The study also found that the effective care of frail older persons is only possible through stakeholder engagement and cross-sectoral collaboration. The study therefore recommends that government should undertake a process of social reforms to ensure that the needs of this group are prioritised, that a performance framework should be implemented to ensure delivery and that all stakeholders should be mobilised. The study has contributed to these outcomes by suggesting a model for needs assessment of frail older persons, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. This model could be used to improve care practices, serve government in evidence-based policy making and provide a useful analytical tool for scholarship

Re-invigorating ubuntu through water: A human right to water under the Namibian Constitution

This book argues for the existence of a court enforceable human right to water that is implied from the right to life in Article 6 of the Namibian Constitution. The book builds this argument by using tools of constitutional interpretation and with the aid of comparative materials. As such, the African value of ubuntu is invoked. Ubuntu – which is legally developed through its four key principles of community, interdependence, dignity and solidarity – is anchored in a novel approach to Namibian constitutional interpretation that is conceptualised as ‘re-invigorative constitutionalism’. The book advances the ‘AQuA’ (adequacy – quality – accessibility) content of water and articulates the correlative duties within the context of the respect – protect – fulfil trilogy, which are duties imposed upon the Namibian state as the primary duty bearer for a right to water. These duties include irreducible essential content duties that are argued to be immediate when compared to general obligations. In giving substance to duties that flow from a right to water, international law interpretative resources are also relied upon, including General Comment No 15 by the United Nations Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights, the African Commission’s Principles and Guidelines on Social and Economic Rights, and the World Health Organisation’s Drinking-water Quality Guidelines. Moreover, the book addresses various justiciability concerns that may arise, arguing that Namibian courts are institutionally competent and legitimate in enforcing right to water claims through the application of the bounded deliberation model. Additionally, because the Principles of State Policy in Article 95 of the Namibian Constitution are rendered court unenforceable by Article 101, the argument is made that this does not undermine the claim that a right to water, anchored in the right to life, can be enforced through the courts.illustrato

Redefining the Smart City: Culture, Metabolism and Governance. Case Study of Port Louis, Mauritius

This thesis of 8 publications explores how Smart Cities can move away from the corporate agenda of ICT consortiums supporting modernist new towns. A proposed Smart City Framework integrates sustainability principles using Culture, Governance and Metabolism to better achieve the UN urban agenda. This is then applied to the city of Port Louis, Mauritius, to enable urban regeneration of the old city to be enabled

African Studies Abstracts Online: number 53, 2016

ASA Online provides a quarterly overview of journal articles and edited works on Africa in the field of the social sciences and the humanities available in the ASC library. Issue 53 (2016). African Studies Centre, Leiden

Institutional dynamics and impact on capital formation: evidence from Namibia and Tanzania

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the impact of institutions on fixed capital accumulation over time in two developing countries, both former German colonies: Namibia and Tanzania. This is motivated by two recent underpinning theories: the new institutional theory, which views institutions as fundamental determinants of economic outcomes and income variations among countries (the institutional hypothesis); and the theory of irreversible investment under uncertainty, which emphasis the impact of uncertainty on investment and capital-stock accumulation. The first part of the thesis deals with the measurement and definitions of institutions. Empirical measures of political and economic institutions have been previously produced; however, most cover short periods of time. The short time span of the institutional indices makes them practical in cross-countries and panel studies, rather than in country-specific studies. The importance of country-specific studies is underscored by the notion that different historical paths led to different ways of organising economic activities and political structures, yielding the differences in economic development across countries. To overcome this challenge, this thesis presents a database on institutional measures for Namibia and Tanzania for the period 1884 to 2009. These indicators are used to assess the nature of political and economic institutional transformation from the colonial legacy to the modern outcome, using Namibia and Tanzania as a natural experiment. Relying on archival information on formal laws in Namibia and Tanzania, the thesis constructs institutional indicators that are de jure in nature representing political freedom, property rights and judicial independence. These allow for the assessment of rules the game, rather than outcome. The formal codification of rights and freedoms is of little significance if those rights cannot be enforced. Therefore, the de facto element is also considered through the construction of separate indicators on political instability and judicial independence. A clear theoretical framework on each indicator provides the selection and combination of each sub-component. A meaningful composite measure is based on the techniques of principal components and factor analysis. v The thesis argues that despite changes in colonial identity in these countries (i.e. German, then British or South African), the broader framework of institutions remained partly the same, particularly in the case Namibia. It is true that, with the attainment of independence in Namibia, many institutions did change, particularly in the areas of political freedom, and judicial and political instability. Measures such as property rights, on the other hand, are slow to change. However, the overall long-lasting effect of these colonial institutions on economic outcomes remains an empirical question. Similarly, the case of Tanzania reflects the notion of institutional persistence as the country continued to undermine political freedom even after the attainment of independence. Tanzania is among the few countries which adopted a constitution without a bill of rights at independence. Also, the new indicators for both countries, while covering a long time period (1884–2009), correlate fairly well with some of the widely used institutional indices produced by Freedom House and the Heritage Foundation. The second part of thesis establishes the impact of institutional variables on capital accumulation in Namibia and Tanzania, applying the Johansen Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) technique. The data span for Namibia is from 1923 to 2009, and that for Tanzania is from 1946 to 2009. The findings highlight the importance of uncertainty (political instability) in explaining capital accumulation over time in Namibia. The results also show that other institutional variables are important in explaining uncertainty. Rising levels of property rights and political rights lower political instability in Namibia. The empirical evidence for Tanzania indicates the importance of property rights in explaining capital accumulation over time. The most interesting result is the importance accorded to the judicial independence, which showed a positive correlation to gross domestic product (GDP). It is also shown that other institutional variables (property rights and political rights) have a positive correlation to judicial independence. A further finding is that uncertainty (political instability) has a negative effect on economic development over time in Tanzania

Mining enterprises and regional economic development: an exploratory analysis of the sustainable development model

Towards the end of the 1990s, and in response to increasing global condemnation, the mining industry adopted sustainable development (SD) principles and standards through corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. This approach not only proposed a dramatic change in the operating practices of large mining houses, but also suggested a grand vision for the industry as a long term catalyser of local economic growth. This research now investigates the effect that mining enterprises which operate under these principles have on sub-national economic development. In doing so, it undertakes multiple case-study analysis, focussing on a single firm, Rio Tinto, and covers three of its subsidiary companies at various stages of development. Consistent with claims by mining advocates, this work confirms the frequently striking importance that large mines have for sub-national economies. However, this investigation disagrees with the emphasis typically attributed to each stream of benefits and brings attention back to the use that mining cash flows are put to. More generally, the study argues that the potential for large mining firms to trigger endogenous growth has been underestimated. On the one hand, these enterprises can contribute distinctly to local capital accumulation; on the other, under certain circumstances, they can also help sustain increases in local productivity endogenously. Indeed; while local preconditions will determine socioeconomic outcomes to a significant degree, mining companies can play a critical part in economic planning and the building of innovative institutions, which could, in turn, help increase the underlying local rate of technological absorption, human capital and overall capacity for economic governance. This entails a drastic (and controversial) change from the role previously assumed by companies. Yet, this study also concludes that, in some other cases, SD has promoted unattainable economic expectations. In these cases, minimising the local impact of mining would be a more advisable economic strategy