Managing urban growth in Lusaka, Zambia

The question of urban management is a key issue for policy makers in Africa. The objective in this paper is to analyse recent trends in the management of urban growth in Lusaka, Zambia. The Zambian urbanizaiton experience is of a transition from constrained to unconstrained patterns of urbanization and of the imperative to dismantle the heritage of colonial policies. Lusaka’s management performance with regard to the provision of shelter and services as well as work opportunities for an expanding population is investigated. It is argued that the experience of Lusaka underscores the urban management dilemmas of transcending the burden of past policies.