Is Formalisation Still a Viable Goal in African Cities?

This blog critically challenges the longstanding assumption in African urban policy that informal settlements are temporary problems to be "fixed" through formalisation such as upgrading, titling, or relocation. It argues that this approach has failed because it misunderstands how African cities actually grow: informally, through systems that are often more adaptive, affordable, and responsive than formal ones. Instead of chasing the unrealistic goal of full formalisation, the blog proposes a shift toward functional integration -providing services, infrastructure, and support within informal systems, while recognising and working with community structures. It calls for a new urban planning paradigm that engages with informality as the norm, not the exception, and urges governments to act as enablers rather than enforcers. The message is clear: stop chasing the myth of a formal finish line, and start planning for the cities that actually exist.

See below for parts 1 through 4:

• PART 1/5: Colonial Echoes in African Urban Planning: Why History Still Shapes Our Cities
• PART 2/5: Post-Colonial Urban Planning in Africa: Reforming the Unreformable?
• PART 3/5: Does Urban Planning Drive or Drag Economic Growth in Africa? A Post-Colonial Reckoning
• PART 4/5: Why Are African Cities Spatially So Similar? The Hidden Forces Behind Urban Form

Abstract based on original source.