Health, wellbeing and nutrition
Many residents in African cities face considerable challenges relating to health, nutrition and wellbeing, along with marginalisation or exclusion in accessing healthcare – especially those living in poverty. Yet these difficulties are often masked within wider data and policy debates by the so-called “urban advantage”.
Poor access to clean water, sanitation and affordable quality health services, as well as malnutrition, have made many people living in African cities – particularly in informal settlements – vulnerable to communicable diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis. The Covid-19 crisis has highlighted the extent of health vulnerabilities in cities and the wider consequences for national and global health security, along with the fragility of food and nutrition security in many urban centres.
Improving integration between multiple city systems – including healthcare, food, water and sanitation, waste management, energy and spatial planning – is key to securing better health, wellbeing and nutrition outcomes for residents in African cities. This domain looks at the political dimensions underlying the ability of governments to provide affordable, higher quality health services and food, exploring potential policy approaches and interventions to improve access and availability.
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LATEST NEWS from ACRC
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New research: Assessing climate change impacts and solutions across 12 African cities
For ACRC research, climate change was a key crosscutting theme, which we investigated across all of our 12 cities and eight urban development domains. The synthesis report was led by ICLEI Africa and co-authored by Hayley Leck, Zakiyya Atkins, Luka Dreyer, Yakhuluntu Dubuzana, Clara Marais, Lorena Pasquini, Tashi Piprek, Meggan Spires and Kate Strachan.
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Catalysing change in Nairobi: Launching the city foundation phase report
On 7 February 2025, ACRC convened more than 100 stakeholders in Nairobi to officially launch the city’s foundation phase report. This report brings together diverse perspectives on Nairobi’s urban trajectory, offering an in-depth analysis of the political dynamics that drive urban change and examining the key city systems influencing access to services across the city.
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New research: Productive partnerships and citizen agency key to urban reform in Kampala
A new report by Paul Isolo Mukwaya, Judith Mbabazi and Henrik Ernstson draws on ACRC’s holistic conceptual framework components – politics, systems and domains – to analyse urban development in Kampala.