Governance for Pro-Poor Urban Development ― Lessons from Ghana

The world development institutions commonly present 'urban governance' as an antidote for the so-called ‘urbanisation of poverty’ and ‘parasitic urbanism’ in Africa. This book is the first comprehensive, in-depth systematic analysis of the meaning, nature, and effects of 'urban
governance' in theory and in practice from the perspective of people in developing countries, with a focus on Ghana, a country widely regarded as an island of good governance in a sea of chaotic governance in the sub region. The author provides a simple but novel taxonomy of urban governance and applies it to entire urban systems in the lived context of an entire urban system in Africa. It explores, analyses and evaluates the assumptions, mission, and vision of pro-poor urban governance, looking at both the political (democracy and decentralisation) and economic
(privatisation and entrepreneurialism) dimensions. This book tests the claims of pro-poor urban governance against the empirical evidence 'on the ground' and shows that, contrary to claims that urban governance is 'developmentalist', in practice, it is a handmaiden of neoliberalism. Demonstrating how urban governance has worsened or failed to address the urbanisation of poverty, it also shows that diverse groups and classes experience urban governance differently such that not only are there substantial differences in urban life but also there is pervasive social differentiation in how people access and control urban services and resources.

Franklin Obeng-Odoom is an urban researcher at the School of the Built Environment at the University of Technology, Sydney where he is the Chancellor's Postdoctoral Research Fellow. In January 2013, Franklin was appointed by the International Social Science Council as a World Social Science Fellow for his work on sustainable urbanisation, three years after becoming a Dan David Scholar for 'innovative and interdisciplinary research that cuts across traditional boundaries and paradigms'.

His research interests are in political economy of natural resources(especially water, oil, and land), political economy of cities, and political economy of development. Among the journals in which his research has appeared are Review of African Political Economy, The Review of Black Political Economy, and Review of Social Economy, Regional Studies, Cities, and Housing Studies.Franklin is Associate Editor of African Review of Economics and Finance and Journal of Sustainable Development, and the Book Review Editor of Journal of International Real Estate and Construction Studies. He serves on the editorial board of Urban Challenge (Urbani Izziv).