E-participation as a Mechanism of Stakeholder Engagement in the City of Harare

Linos Mapfumo and Sybert Mutereko ()
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Linos Mapfumo: University of KwaZulu-Natal
Sybert Mutereko: University of KwaZulu-Natal

Chapter Chapter 8 in Reflections on African Cities in Transition, 2020, pp 169-182 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract Cities in emerging economies, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, are beginning to leverage the power of information and communication technologies (ICTs) by incorporating e-participation as the key mechanism of public participation. However, there seems to be an overwhelming consensus among scholars on its lack of effectiveness. This chapter contributes to the growing body of literature on e-participation as an alternative governance mechanism and as an innovative technology for African cities in transition by providing insights into its application or lack thereof in politically polarised cities such as the City of Harare. In doing so, the chapter draws strongly on a case study of the City of Harare in Zimbabwe and on data gleaned through surveys and documentary analysis. The data for this chapter emerged from a broader project that used interviews with purposefully selected informal traders and their customer participants (N = 195) randomly chosen for the surveys. The chapter argues that the effects of political and debilitating economic challenges, which have resulted in skyrocketing prices and diminishing disposable incomes, have been to limit citizen’s resources for data which could enable them to be actively involved in various ICT platforms for e-participation. This, together with frequent power outages, is a huge barrier to the application of alternative governance and innovative technologies for African cities in transition. This study not only highlights the importance of e-participation but underscores the need to understand the heterogeneity of the context of its application.

Keywords: E-participation; Local government; Public participation; Social media; Stakeholder engagement (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-46115-7_8

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