The World Bank Group recently launched a new global urban development strategy that will guide its project financing and research over the next decade. The World Bank says cities will expand by another two billion people over the next 20 years, and 90 percent of urban population growth will occur in the developing world. “Developing countries need assistance in facing this historically unprecedented pace of urbanization, including anticipatory policies and financing for urban services.”
World Bank President Robert Zoellick argues that urban development cannot be separated from larger economic development strategies. Furthermore, urban development plans have deep impacts on health, education, environment, and infrastructure: “Urbanization is a vital phase of development, and if managed well, it can be a key driver of long-term economic growth in a country. Climate change, jobs, poverty, education, health, infrastructure – these are all development challenges closely intertwined with cities.”
Countries can “harness the economic energy of cities” to reduce poverty and increase economic growth. Many countries are already targeting cities as key areas of investment: “In Vietnam, urban poverty has been reduced by an impressive 11 percent a year over a 10-year period and in China, more than 50 percent of GDP is now generated in coastal cities representing only 20 percent of its territory. ”
Katherine Sierra, Vice President, Sustainable Development, added that the new urban and local government strategy “will help governments at all levels make cities more equitable, efficient, sustainable, and environmentally friendly. The strategy draws on two principles. First, that density, agglomeration, and proximity are fundamental to human advancement, economic productivity, and social equity. Second, that cities need to be well managed and sustainable.”
The strategy will focus on: city management, governance, and finance; urban poverty; cities and economic growth; city planning, land, and housing; and urban environment, climate change, and disaster management.
The World Bank outlined a few focus areas in their ten-year strategy:
- Planning and preparation: The strategy advocates careful planning and preparation, particularly in low-income, least-urbanized countries in Africa and South Asia where the risk of expanding slums and increased poverty is high if actions are not taken.
- Putting the Poor on the Map: The strategy calls for scaled-up approaches to urban poverty, which is growing across most developing regions, by applying GIS technologies to identify, map and better target the urban poor at a city-wide and national level.
- Building sustainable cities: The strategy includes the Bank’s ECO Cities Program, which helps developing countries manage cities that are ecologically and environmentally sustainable. It also provides impetus to retrofit and redevelop existing areas.
- Expanding reach and coverage: Urban population growth is greatest today in secondary cities. The Bank recognizes the growing diversity of its clients and the need to expand reach and coverage to more cities than ever before. The Bank will pursue “wholesaling” strategies on a larger scale to target an expanding number of cities by working with financial intermediaries and Municipal Funds for assistance to local governments.
With massive urban growth occuring in Asia, the Word Bank decided to launch its new urban development strategy in Singapore, a regional “hub for knowledge on urban management.”
Read the summary of the strategy paper and go to the urban strategy web site. Read a more critical review of the urban development strategy by Next American City.
Also, check out UN-HABITAT‘s latest research, “Planning Sustainable Cities: Global Report on World Settlements 2009,” released during the 2009 World Habitat Day (see earlier post). The report outlines the crucial role the planning profession plays in creating more sustainable cities. Peter Newman, author of “Resilient Cities: Responding to Peak Oil and Climate Change” wrote one of the more interesting chapters in the book (see earlier post about ”Resilient Cities” and an interview with Newman).
