Neighbourhood and district economic development
The majority of African urban residents live and work in informal settlements, engaged in small-scale, often home-based economic activities. Earnings from these activities are typically low and precarious, with informal moneylenders providing vital services to residents, but usually on exploitative terms.
Some residents work beyond their neighbourhood, through their own microenterprises or employed by larger businesses, which tend to be more stable, regularised and with better established markets. However, due to unreliable infrastructure services and limited benefits of co-location in African cities, there are few such firms, so their contribution to poverty reduction and structural transformation is limited.
Looking through ACRC’s political economy lens, neighbourhood and district economic development reflects the distribution of economic and land rent in the local economy. City systems need to be mobilised so that enterprises can function smoothly. The living standards of the urban poor in these neighbourhoods could therefore be improved by strengthening city economies, generating “decent work” opportunities and boosting entrepreneurial skills. This involves a wide range of key actors, including economic development agencies, business/trade associations, informal business networks, trade unions and other labour organisations, and local politicians.
Within the neighbourhood and district economic development domain, we are focusing on the following cities:
LATEST NEWS from ACRC

Water, water, everywhere: Challenges and opportunities for inclusive water delivery in Lagos
Potable water is a luxury good in Lagos – a city with so many ambient water sources that planning around them has yielded a rather quirky layout. The enduring, seemingly intractable challenge for the city is how to convert this abundant natural resource into safe drinking water for residents.

Learning from the ground: Action research in Nairobi’s informal settlements
What does research in informal settlements in Nairobi look like? This was the guiding question for a recent learning writeshop that brought together action research (AR) teams working across Nairobi’s informal settlements.

Resilient urban markets: Surprises from Ggaba Market fieldwork in Kampala
The Kampala action research project on inclusive markets and resilient communities in Ggaba Market seeks to tackle the interlinked issues of flooding, waste management and sanitation in urban markets.