Steering Low-Carbon Growth in Emerging African Cities: Insights from Dar es Salaam

By the end of the 21st century, over 30 African cities will have populations exceeding 10 million people, placing them among the world’s largest megacities. The region’s rapid urbanization will stimulate investments in new urban infrastructure, including power plants, roads, and residential buildings, which will push city-level energy use and carbon emissions to new levels. The region’s impending urbanization and infrastructure growth presents an opportunity in the global fight against climate change. By coordinating efforts now, urban planners, infrastructure service providers, and municipalities can “get it right” and invest in sustainable and low-carbon infrastructure to avoid locking into carbon-intensive patterns of urban growth.

Using findings from interviews and stakeholder workshops undertaken over three months of fieldwork in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, this presentation by Chibulu Luo, a 2018-19 IMFG Graduate Fellow, explores three key questions: What role do African cities and municipal governments play in producing low-carbon urban growth? Which institutions or governing bodies should take the lead, and why? And what are the opportunities to scale up investments to finance sustainable technologies and infrastructure? The presentation elucidates possible governance and financing options for Dar es Salaam as well as their relevance for other cities in the region.