African urbanization in the urban century: The roles of participatory planning and management

Abstract

The 21st century urbanization emerged with opportunities and challenges for urban planning and management alike. However, due to the importance of public participation in planning and the management of urban infrastructures, prospective beneficiaries’ involvement is usually encouraged. This has necessitated the need to extend the review of the increasing avenues in which participatory planning has expressed or is expressing greater acceptance and application. With literatures short of expressing the diversity inherent in this all-encompassing input to present urban phenomenon particularly in the less developed countries like Nigeria; this work enlisted scenarios in which researchers, urban managers, and policy makers and implementors can assess current trends of participation in effective and efficient urban infrastructure provision and management in a fast-urbanizing world. Most often hindrances like individual and communal poverty levels are overrated thereby denying assessors the full grasp of existing and potential inputs to urban development from environments easily categorized as low-income slums of despair. Hence, concerted efforts should be on the peculiarities of joint efforts that sees beneficiaries as viable stakeholders that can keep cities working, and whose participatory input in planning and management, as evident in Asia and southern America, can aid in achieving present and future Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).