A Review of Urban Neighborhood Scholarship

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Moving Beyond the Sustainable Livelihood Rhetoric: A Conceptual Model of Rural Livelihood Sustainability

The sustainable livelihood concept, with associated diverse frameworks do not explicitly show how to measure livelihood sustainability. Drawing insights from literature, this study aims to develop a conceptual model, which in addition to providing integrated understanding of livelihood sustainability, allows for measurement with special application to rural households. The study argues that the sustainability of any livelihood activity is predicated on four critical factors; (1) the viability level of the activity; thus the activity has to be economically beneficial to enhance the long term sustenance, (2) asset base; thus asset endowment has to be adequate and diverse enough to mitigate the effects of shocks and stresses, (3) vulnerability; the exposure to both internal and external shocks has to be minimal, and (4) ecological impacts; thus the activity has to be in harmony with the natural environment, meaning that the environmental impacts of the activity need not be detrimental. The model illustrates multifunctional rural system, and has the potential to measure rural well-being over time. It is a readily tool to guide policy makers in formulating appropriate sustainable livelihood policies and strategies. In addition, it has universal application attribute. The study recommends two things; empirical application of the model in different contexts and refinement, where necessary. Keywords: livelihood; sustainability; conceptual model; househol

Social sustainability: a review of indicators and empirical application

As one of the three pillars of sustainable development, social sustainability has received little attention compared to the economic and environmental pillars. The major reason accounting for the neglect is attributed to its contested nature. This has culminated in the current conceptual understanding of the term. Previous efforts on social sustainability have concentrated on theoretical interpretations rather than quantification assessment. This is because quantifying social sustainability is regarded a daunting task. Meanwhile, indicators are disparate which makes understanding even more confusing. To enrich our knowledge on the term, definitional assessment and indicator synthesis and application will play a major role. The objective of this paper is to review the indicators of social sustainability and empirically apply them using the composite index approach. The review uniquely identified three dimensions (sub components) of social sustainability - representation mechanism, collective state and individual access. Empirical application in Kibera in Kenya, depicted a medium level of social sustainability. The highest contributing sub component was collective state with the least being representation mechanism. The study results evidently suggest policy support for inclusive governance, improved housing, job creation, security, education and community trust. It is believed that addressing these diverse issues will enhance social sustainability in Kibera

Exploring the utility of Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) in ranking livelihood activities for effective and sustainable rural development interventions in developing countries

It is commonly known that most development projects, especially in the global south, tend to achieve unintended results or fail because of lack of due diligence. Project satisfaction and sustainability would only be achieved if consistent with the actual needs of the people intended to benefit. Based on field experiences in the Fantekwa District of Eastern Ghana, this study aims to explore the utility of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) in prioritizing livelihood activities to aid in effective and sustainable poverty reduction interventions in developing countries. Data from twenty five development stakeholders in the district were used for the assessment. The study demonstrates that with appropriate data, and systematically following all required processes, the AHP approach can effectively show where intervention is most needed. Application of AHP in the current context, the study argues, has the potential to address the issue of wrong development targeting with associated counterproductive and nonstarter outcomes

The road to sustainable Kigali: a contextualized analysis of the challenges

Rwanda, despite being a predominantly rural country, has remarkably performed in the post-conflict (late 1990s) period on the socio-economic fronts. Contemporary challenges in Rwanda's capital city, Kigali, are widespread informality, both in the economy and urban built environment. Informality significantly hinders human health and wellbeing attainment. This paper assesses the development trajectory of Kigali with reference to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using mixed research methods, including field visit. In doing so, the study dwells on three theories; postcolonial urbanism, post-conflict state building and neoliberalism. The paper diagnoses informality, polarized health sector and governance, as critical limitations to the attainment of sustainable development in Kigali. It argues that urban development in post-conflict Kigali is deeply rooted in capitalist and neoliberal ideology, where the state functions as the architect and facilitator of wealth accumulation for the few elites. Based on the analyses of the current development patterns, inclusive governance is identified as a key intervention to achieve sustainable development in Kigali

サブ・サハラアフリカ農村部における家計の持続可能性に関する研究 : ガーナ共和国を対象とした実証的接近

学位の種別: 課程博士審査委員会委員 : （主査）東京大学特任准教授 松田 浩敬, 東京大学教授 味埜 俊, 国連大学サステイナビリティ高等研究所客員教授 長尾 眞文, ナイロビ大学准教授 デヴィッド ムンガイ, 東京大学准教授 小貫 元治University of Tokyo(東京大学

Colonial legacies and contemporary urban planning practices in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Effective urban planning is said to be crucial for ensuring liveable, equitable and viable urban areas progress towards sustainability. This study combines a review of the relevant literature, key informant interviews and field observations to explore contemporary planning practices in Dhaka, Bangladesh. We problematize ineffective urban planning practice in Dhaka as a prime expression and reproduction of colonial planning, which manifests itself through institutional bureaucracy and centralization, technocracy, and ad hoc planning. We argue that these imprints have rendered planning institutions weak and fostered dependency on imported ideologies and practices. The situation, we further argue, not only stifles local planning creativity but also makes the planning profession unattractive. Apart from limited local innovations and political aspirations for meeting global development targets, urban planning and city management have followed a reductionist approach under neoliberalism. With little to no social resonance, attempts at creating ordered spaces are, instead, contributing to increased spatial fragmentation and segregation, informality, and widespread urban poverty. To promote urban sustainability, this paper urges the contextualization of colonial ideologies and practices against the social, political and economic realities of urban Bangladesh

Urban-rural linkages: Effective solutions for achieving sustainable development in Ghana from an SDG interlinkage perspective

Urbanization and concomitant challenges pose a great threat to sustainable development. Urban and rural development interacts through the flows of people, materials, energy, goods, capital, and information. Without building sound urban–rural linkages, achieving development in one area could compromise it in another area. Achieving sustainable development needs customized policy prioritization and implementation in both urban and rural areas. Much literature exists in the research field of urban–rural linkages, but little has been done via a comprehensive analysis from an interlinkage perspective in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Sustainable Development Goal 11 on sustainable cities and several targets embedded under other Goals provides a good framework for analyzing the urban–rural linkages. This paper contributes to this novel research perspective using Ghana as a case. The study applied an integrated approach by combining the results from a solution-scanning exercise with an SDG interlinkage analysis to identify the challenges and priority solutions and assess the synergies and trade-offs of the identified solutions. It extends the conventional solution-scanning approach by further assessing the synergies and trade-offs of the solutions from an SDG interlinkage perspective. It also enables a more practical SDG interlinkage analysis through the contributions from the multi-stakeholder consultations conducted in Ghana. The analyses show that prioritizing gender inclusion (Goal 5) will positively affect many social and well-being outcomes, including poverty elimination (Goal 1), hunger reduction (Goal 2), health improvement (Goal 3) and access to quality education (Goal 4) and basic services, such as water (Goal 6). However, gender inclusion could have potential trade-offs in the agricultural sector (Goal 2) in the case that women who dominate agricultural value chains could move to work in other sectors. Lack of proper infrastructure (Goal 9), such as transport, will hinder wide gender inclusion. An integrated approach that considers both the synergies and trade-offs of relevant solutions is critical for effective policymaking, specifically in developing countries

Rethinking the Kibera ‘Slum’: The Role of Social Networks as a Mechanism for Coping with the Increased Demand for Job Opportunities

Rural-urban migration is a livelihood strategy used to increase income at the household level. This study proposes four stages of livelihood enhancement in the urban informal sector: (1) Migration from rural to urban areas, (2) Entering an informal sector, (3) Formation of self-help groups and local enterprises and (4) Expansion of stable income-generating activities. At these different stages, social networks play critical roles in connecting new migrants to the assets and networks that they need to increase and stabilize their income. At the forth stage, migrants who operate local enterprises start creating ties with their business partners in the formal sector. Yet, they tend to choose to remain in the informal sector because of the better access to income, assets and networks. The traditional dualistic view of labour market, which is segmented into the formal and informal sectors, is not applicable to the cases observed in Kibera because the residents’ ultimate goal for livelihood enhancement is not solely to enter the formal market but also to maximize their income. Economic activities observed in Kibera cannot be fully explained by applying the existing studies and general theories of ‘slum’ as evidenced by this study. Comprehending the current state of Kibera leads to plentiful implication for expanding the theory and practice of sustainable development the in the informal sector. Keywords: Kibera, Informal sector, Social networks, Job market, Sustainable Developmen

Learning for a Better Future

Various international scholars and associates of the PASCAL (Place, Social Capital and Learning Regions) International Observatory (Africa hub), under the auspices of the Centre for Local Economic Development (CENLED) based at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), have contributed chapters in this scholarly book. The book aims to demonstrate how a combination of globalisation, pandemics and the impact of innovation and technologies are driving towards a world in which traditional ideas are being challenged. The book carries forward a dual context and relevance: to South African social, educational, economic and cultural development, and the broader international context and action directed at how lifelong learning for all can be fostered in communities as a foundation for a just, human-centred, sustainable world. The distinctive contribution of this book to the production of a local body of knowledge lies in the symbiotic relationships between these objectives, so that South Africa could serve as a test case in working towards approaches that have a wider international significance