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Publication - Policy Brief
Transforming secondary cities for job creation: A study of Uganda
The Government of Uganda is taking steps to strengthen secondary city economies, in part through plans to establish nine new cities. Kampala currently dominates the country’s economic and urban system, but there are signs that the city’s labour market is becoming saturated. As such, there is a need to stimulate growth and job creation in smaller urban...
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Publication - Project Report
Assessing waste management services in Kigali
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Publication - Synthesis paper
Doing Special Economic Zones right: A policy framework
Special Economic Zones (SEZs) have become a popular policy instrument around the world. Encouraged by the success stories of SEZs in the 1980s and 1990s in East Asia, policymakers in the developing world increasingly see them as a way to easily promote industrial development, attract foreign investment, and stimulate job creation. However, results have not always lived up...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Peshawar’s historic walled city: Firms, mobility and public services
Ancient cities, which were often old walled cities, exhibit peculiar spatial, social and economic forms. Their urban forms are highly path-dependent featuring narrow congested streets, and make retrofitting modern infrastructure extremely challenging. This creates unique challenges for government agencies involved in urban service delivery. This study examines data...
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Publication - Growth Brief
The prospects for manufacturing-led growth in Africa’s cities
Many African countries are urbanising rapidly despite limited growth in manufacturing. Although other sectors could spur job creation and development, much like manufacturing, they need active public policy to support urban connectivity and business scale. Although the growth of cities in Africa has been closely linked to rising incomes across the continent, many...
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Publication - Project Report
Considerations for land value capture reform in the Greater Amman Municipality
This report discusses several policy options for improving the calculation and collection of specific land value capture instruments. Namely: Land Value Increment Taxes; Betterment Levies; Development Impact Fees and Exactions. The report focuses on the city of Amman, however, several of the policy challenges and solutions that emerge are common to many developing...
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Publication - Case study
The BRT and the danfo: A case study of Lagos’ transport reforms from 1999-2019
Over the last 20 years, Lagos has had to make large-scale investments in transport infrastructure to keep up with its growing population. Most notably, in 2008, Lagos opened the first ever Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system on the African continent. Today, the system boasts two different lines which cover over 35.5 km of track and transport over 350,000 commuters on a daily...
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Publication - Policy paper
Can Africa learn from the Chinese urbanisation story?
This paper provides a framework to understand the similarities and differences between Africa’s current urbanisation pathway and the path China has taken over the last 30 years. A major difference is that Africa’s urbanisation to date has not been associated with anywhere near the same gains in productivity and poverty reduction that have been seen in China. Instead,...
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Publication - Project Report
Improving access to labour markets for refugees: Evidence from Uganda
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Publication - Policy Brief
Improving access to labour markets for refugees: Evidence from Uganda
Publication - Growth Brief
Saving microfinance through innovative lending
The traditional microfinance model has had limited impact on the income and productivity of borrowers. More innovative and flexible lending models can boost entrepreneurship and welfare.