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Showing all Blog Posts, Publications in Cities That Work
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Publication - Miscellaneous
Presentation - Metropolitan governance: International experience
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Blog post
Improving tax administration in Tanzania: Lessons from Uganda’s tax reform
Reforms to revenue administration offer a low cost option for cities to dramatically and sustainably expand revenues. Cities in Tanzania can learn from the successful reforms implemented in Kampala – but successful reform requires sufficient political will and funding to drive these. On the 2nd – 4th October 2017, the International Growth Centre (IGC) was invited to...
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Blog post
Driving urban development: An agenda for accessibility
On the 8th September 2017, the World Bank, George Washington University and the International Growth Centre hosted the 4th Urbanization and Poverty Reduction Research Conference: Building or Rebuilding Cities for Growth in Washington DC. The conference brought together top academics and practitioners to discuss the role sustainable cities play in economic growth and poverty...
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Blog post
Making the most of urban land: the role of rights and responsibilities
On the 8th September 2017, the World Bank, George Washington University and the International Growth Centre hosted the 4th Urbanization and Poverty Reduction Research Conference: Building or Rebuilding Cities for Growth in Washington DC. The conference brought together top academics and practitioners to discuss the role sustainable cities play in economic growth and poverty...
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Blog post
World Habitat Day 2017
To mark 2017’s World Habitat Day, the theme of which is Housing Policies: Affordable Homes, we asked researchers working on housing to provide their thoughts on the future of urban housing policy: Could you give an example of an interesting policy that could help to tackle some of the housing challenges faced in developing cities? Simon Franklin: large scale low cost...
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Publication - Synthesis paper
Secure, legally enforceable and marketable land rights for urban development
This Cities that Work paper first outlines why secure, legally enforceable and marketable land rights play such a pivotal role in urban development. Section 2 discusses the trade-offs associated with different tenure systems, both formal and informal. Whilst there can be strong benefits in formalising land rights, processes of formalisation need to be underpinned by...
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Publication - Synthesis paper
Land and property taxes for municipal finance
This Cities that Work paper explores why land and physical properties represent the largest source of untapped municipal revenue. Alongside their potential to raise significant public revenues, land and property taxes are also fairer and more efficient than other forms of tax. They have limited effects on urban investment, and allow governments to capture increases in land...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Land and property taxes: Exploiting untapped municipal revenues
Part of our Cities that Work publications, this brief outlines the importance of annual land and property tax as a source of municipal finance and explores trade-offs that policymakers face in implementing reform. It also identifies examples of best practice for reform from cities across the developing world.
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Publication - Growth Brief
Financing fast-growing cities
Many developing country cities are growing at an unprecedented rate. To respond to this unplanned, rapid expansion, it will be beneficial for city authorities both to expand existing revenue sources and explore new financing options to match higher demand for public services. Cities like Kampala, Uganda, will triple in size by the year 2050, according to estimates...
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Blog post
Unexpected side-effects: Urban policies and market responses
Should cities invest in public transport systems, even if they might slow growth? Can an HOV lane reduce congestion when drivers circumvent it? Is unpredictability of police enforcement a good thing for reducing drunk-driving? These and other surprising facts were presented at the recent IGC mini-cities conference. Research highlighted below showcases the importance of...