The Impact of Colonial Heritage on Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

The study explores the hypothesis of a relationshipbetween colonial heritage and development insub-Saharan Africa. Seventeen countries thatexperienced indirect colonial rule and an equal numberwith a history of direct rule in the region areexamined. Development is defined first, in terms ofhuman development [as per UNDP’s Human DevelopmentIndex (HDI)], and then, as the ability of a country totranslate economic gains into improved livingconditions (defined as the difference between acountry’s real GDP per capita ranking minus its HDIranking). A relationship is found between colonialheritage and human development but not betweencolonial heritage and the ability to translateeconomic gains into improved conditions. It isconcluded that the difference in human conditions ismore a function of inter-country variabilities inindividual and local autonomy than by state actionsspecifically aimed at improving these conditions

Interorganisational Relations and Effectiveness in a Developing Housing Policy Field

The study deals with the problem of administrative capacity in housing policy implementation in less developed countries. Specifically, interorganisational relations as a strategy for improving administrative effectiveness are examined. The main question addressed is as follows: ‘is the positive association between interorganisational relations and effectiveness found by studies in advanced countries tenable in the context of housing policy administration in developing countries?’ Employing data on interorganisational relations amongst housing policy organisations in Cameroon, it is found that the relation is also tenable in the context of a developing country. A secondary question of interest in the study is as follows: ‘what is the relative strength of association between various modes of interorganisational relations and organisational effectiveness?’ It is found that the more intense the mode, the stronger the association

Barriers to Community Participation in Development Planning: Lessons from the Mutengene (Cameroon) Self‐Help Water Project

The study draws on the experience of the Mutengene, Cameroon self‐help water project to: (i) underscore the indispensable role of community participation (CP); and (ii) identify and discuss leading barriers to CP in development planning. Eleven constraints, including the paternalistic posture of authorities, prescriptive role of the state, embellishment of successes, selective participation, inattention to negative results, hard‐issue bias, intra/inter‐group conflicts, gate‐keeping by leaders, excessive pressures for immediate results, lack of interest, population size, and belief systems, are discussed. Efforts to promote understanding of CP as a viable strategy for implementing capital improvement projects in LDCs are recommended

Urbanization and Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

Data from the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Development Report and the World Bank’s World Development Report are employed to test the hypothesis of a positive link between urbanization and development in sub-Saharan Africa. Level of urbanization is defined as the percentage of a country’s population in cities with at least 20,000 inhabitants. Development is operationalized in terms of the human development index (HDI). Results from correlation and t-test analyses confirm the hypothesized relationship. Thus, the study shows that urbanization and development, measured in terms of the HDI are positively linked at least in the case of the sub-Saharan region

A Model of Public Transit Effectiveness Based on Transit Service Consumer Satisfaction

Extant models of public transit system performance incorporate indicators of cost effectiveness, service effectiveness resources efficiency, and level of service. Conspicuously lacking are models that incorporate indicators of transit service consumer satisfaction. Yet, making public transit more consumer-oriented is crucial to efforts aimed at preserving the environment and maximizing the utility of available resources. Cognizant of this, this article proposes a transit performance evaluation model that has as its central tenet, transit service consumer satisfaction. Data on consumer satisfaction culled from a survey of patrons of a Florida-based transit system are employed to demonstrate the model\u27s practical utility

French Colonial Urbanism in Africa

This chapter explores some of the specificities of the urban planning knowledge transfer between Croatia, in the early period of the socialist Yugoslavia, and the newly independent Guinea, through a detailed examination of objectives, planning principles and solutions as well as the apparent possibility of implementation of the Urban Development Plan of Conakry prepared by the Croatian Urban Planning Institute in 1961-1963. The transfer of architectural and planning expertise between Croatia, as one of the former Yugoslav republics, and the countries of Africa and Asia was to a large degree determined by a specific political frame associated with the Non Aligned Movement. The Urban Development Plan of Conakry was based on the Chart of Athens principles. Besides the projects in industrialization and infrastructure, the most significant result of the early political cooperation was the agreement between the Guinean and Yugoslavian governments on the creation of the Urban Development Plan of Conakry, the capital of Guinea

Determinants of Success in Community Self-Help Projects: \u3cem\u3eThe Case of the Kumbo Water Supply Scheme in Cameroon\u3c/em\u3e

The article examines the community self-help water supply scheme of Kumbo (Nso), Cameroon, with a view to identifying and analysing the factors that have contributed to its success. The success construct is defined along four principal dimensions: \u27internal project objects\u27, \u27benefits to customers\u27, \u27direct contribution to the medium term\u27 and \u27future opportunity in the long term\u27. Evidence suggests that the following factors account for the positive results registered by the project on almost all of these dimensions: a minimum of uncertainty, community awareness and participation, external connection, internal political influence, community cohesion and unity, good timing, competent leadership, stock of human asset and sense of ownership. Future research endeavours will do well to identify factors accounting for the success of similar projects in different settings