Continent’s urban future is the core focus at Africities Summit

A central theme of 9th Africities Summit to be held in Kisumu County next month is the role of intermediary African cities in the implementation of the United Nations 2030 Agenda and the African Union Agenda 2063.

Both the UN and AU recognise that African towns and cities will host more people than the continent’s rural areas in the next two decades, bringing into sharp focus the level of preparedness of the urban centres to provide for the large populations.

These populations will need food, shelter, security, healthy environments to live in, an efficient transportation system, reliable, cost-effective and clean energy, social amenities and employment opportunities. They will also need effective political representation and governance structures, among others.

It will be very expensive to provide all these critical amenities in a sustainable manner. The forthcoming summit is an important opportunity for the continent’s local government leaders to reflect on Africa’s preparedness to meet this challenge. The fact that this will be the first time the summit will be held in a city outside a country’s capital in the initiative’s 20-year history underscores the growing role of intermediary cities in Africa’s future.

Organised by the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG Africa), the summit aims at promoting urbanisation as a positive transformative force for people and communities and reducing inequality, discrimination and poverty. The summit meets every three years to measure Africa’s progress towards the UN 2030 Agenda and the AU Agenda 2063, which call for urgent reflections on sustainable urbanisation in Africa.

Upgrading infrastructure

The 9th Africities Summit, whose theme is “The role of intermediary cities in Africa in the implementation of the United Nations 2030 Agenda and the African Union Agenda 2063”, reflects the shift in Africa to devolve services and developmental focus away from capital cities.

As Kenya’s third-largest city, Kisumu is only just beginning to tap into its enormous economic, social, cultural and political potential and its importance will only grow if it harnesses its potential as a principal city around the Lake Victoria Basin. The summit will test the city’s credentials to meet the objectives of a modern, well-planned city responsive to the needs of an urban population.

The summit presents huge opportunities for the country but mostly for the communities living in western Kenya. The County Government of Kisumu, working in collaboration with the national government and the Council of Governors forum, is keen to ensure that the residents leverage the opportunities that the summit presents.

The county invested heavily to prepare the city as the ideal host — from upgrading infrastructure to improving the region’s hospitality and transport network to enable it to host the expected 10,000 guests.

Kisumu International Airport has been spruced up at a cost of Sh240 million to handle more passengers and cargo while Kisumu Port has undergone a Sh22.5 billion expansion and modernisation so as to play a bigger commercial role in the growing trade in the East African Community.

Economic fortunes

The national government has upgraded and expanded the road network in the region to ease movement of people and goods. Since 2013, it has spent more than Sh100 billion on roads in Nyanza, which has helped to spur economic growth. One of the more notable projects is the Kisumu Northern Bypass, which has had a direct economic impact on Kisumu and the neighbouring regions.

The rehabilitation of the Kisumu-Naivasha meter-gauge railway line also portends well for the economic fortunes of the western region and is one of the showpieces of the infrastructural importance of Kisumu as an intermediary city.

These investments demonstrate how devolution can help to grow rural areas into important economic hubs that respond to the challenges of sustainable development goals as set out by the UN.

The expected over 500 exhibitors from across Africa and beyond, other participants and all visitors to this important summit will be hosted in an expansive exhibition area for business.

Those expected to attend the summit include regional heads of state and government, ministers for local government, housing, public service and urban development, local authorities and local elected officials, officials of local and central administration, civil society, trade organisations, economic operators in the public and private sector, researchers, academics and international cooperation agencies.

Prof Nyong’o is the Governor of Kisumu County