XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Africa
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
A rapid phase of urban growth and rural-to-urban migration across African states during the 1960s and 1970s. Capital cities such as Addis Ababa, Mogadishu, Asmara, and Lagos expanded sharply, while unemployed or underemployed school leavers entered cities in search of work. Urbanisation exposed concentrated poverty and inequality and challenged states with limited administrative capacity.
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Le récit
Urbanisation accelerated across African states during the decades surrounding independence. Cities increasingly attracted rural migrants, including many school leavers seeking employment after educational systems had expanded faster than the labour market. The movement was not simply demographic: it brought expectations and aspirations into urban spaces where states often lacked the capacity to provide housing, services, and sufficient employment.
The extract gives several capital cities as indicators of this transformation. Addis Ababa grew from 560,000 inhabitants in the mid-1960s to more than one million in 1974, while Mogadishu rose from 141,000 in 1965 to over 250,000 in 1974. Asmara increased from 132,000 to 296,000 during the same period, and Lagos recorded an annual growth rate of about 14 percent between 1970 and 1975.
This growth altered the meaning of urbanisation as a supposed index of progress. In African states least able to manage the consequences, cities became places where poverty and disadvantage were concentrated and where disparities between social groups were especially visible. The urban crisis therefore appeared not only as a problem of development but also as a potential source of future structural and political change.
XXᵉ siècle – XXᵉ siècle
Africa
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
A rapid phase of urban growth and rural-to-urban migration across African states during the 1960s and 1970s. Capital cities such as Addis Ababa, Mogadishu, Asmara, and Lagos expanded sharply, while unemployed or underemployed school leavers entered cities in search of work. Urbanisation exposed concentrated poverty and inequality and challenged states with limited administrative capacity.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
Urbanisation accelerated across African states during the decades surrounding independence. Cities increasingly attracted rural migrants, including many school leavers seeking employment after educational systems had expanded faster than the labour market. The movement was not simply demographic: it brought expectations and aspirations into urban spaces where states often lacked the capacity to provide housing, services, and sufficient employment.
The extract gives several capital cities as indicators of this transformation. Addis Ababa grew from 560,000 inhabitants in the mid-1960s to more than one million in 1974, while Mogadishu rose from 141,000 in 1965 to over 250,000 in 1974. Asmara increased from 132,000 to 296,000 during the same period, and Lagos recorded an annual growth rate of about 14 percent between 1970 and 1975.
This growth altered the meaning of urbanisation as a supposed index of progress. In African states least able to manage the consequences, cities became places where poverty and disadvantage were concentrated and where disparities between social groups were especially visible. The urban crisis therefore appeared not only as a problem of development but also as a potential source of future structural and political change.
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