Plug-in urbanism: City building and the parodic guise of new infrastructure in Africa

Prince K Guma, Jethron Ayumbah Akallah and Jack Ong’iro Odeo
Additional contact information
Prince K Guma: University of Sheffield, UK
Jethron Ayumbah Akallah: Maseno University, Kenya
Jack Ong’iro Odeo: JKUAT, Kenya

Urban Studies, 2023, vol. 60, issue 13, 2550-2563

Abstract: Across Africa, cities have become fodder for grand-scale foreign investments and redevelopment projects signifying a distinct phenomenon synonymous with a new kind of urbanism. This paper offers a critical commentary on the proliferation of new infrastructure plans tailored as policy, technological fixes and solutions to urbanisation challenges, both real and perceived. We stir a conversation around the notion of ‘plug-in urbanism’: first, as an entry point for the study of a model of city building that is exceedingly determined by reflex prioritisation of assumedly universal and transferable corporate-driven policy agendas; secondly, as a critique of unidirectional, homogenising and determinist technological ideas and infrastructures; and thirdly, as a recourse to inclusive and holistic planning. We present the case of the Nairobi Expressway, a recently launched two- to four-lane 27 km viaduct, and the largest in Africa, as an example of a ‘plug-in’ infrastructure project: i.e. pre-packaged state-of-the-art development installation that comes complete and tailored as a magic bullet and obvious solution to identified mobility and transport challenges in Nairobi city. We demonstrate how in its parodic guise, the expressway highlights a project that is designed and financed by foreign authorities and sustained in line with foreign standard ideologies of what a world-class city should look like, yet in reality only leads to piecemeal and incomplete growth and development. Drawing from a standpoint of multiple urbanisms, we argue for more inclusive urban futures and visions that are responsive to diverse, popular and heterogeneous articulations of cities.

Keywords: city planning; infrastructure development; Nairobi Expressway; plug-in urbanism; policy mobilities; 城市规划; åŸºç¡€è®¾æ–½å ‘å±•; 内罗毕高速公路; æ ’å…¥å¼ åŸŽå¸‚åŒ–; æ”¿ç­–æµ åŠ¨æ€§ (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00420980231158013 (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:60:y:2023:i:13:p:2550-2563

DOI: 10.1177/00420980231158013

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Urban Studies from Urban Studies Journal Limited
Bibliographic data for series maintained by SAGE Publications ().