Rethinking urban land markets in Africa

All too often the analysis of urban land markets in Africa draws attention to the failure of the African state and its institutions to create an enabling environment for a robust ‘efficient’ land market. It is true that poor land administration and registration systems, together with limited human and financial resources conspire to create obstacles to well functioning land markets that lead to highly bureaucratic, inaccurate and corrupt land practices. But as Caroline Wanjiku Kihato argues, viewing Africa’s urban land challenges as simply a function of technocratic challenges and institutional weaknesses, obscures a much larger (and fundamental) discussion about the appropriateness of the conceptual tools often used to understand the continent’s land markets.

http://www.afesis.org.za/Sustainable-Settlement-Publications/rethinking-urban-land-markets-in-africa