Urban Expansion Program Hosts Malawian Dignitaries for Accommodating Urban Growth Workshop at NYU Africa House

The Urban Expansion program, led by Solly Angel, hosted nine Malawian officials, including representatives from the Ministry of Lands, city councils, and traditional governing bodies, for a four-day “Accommodating Urban Growth in Malawi” workshop at NYU Africa House. With funding in part from the Chandler Foundation and help from Carsten Bjornsson (Esri), Mark Hildebrand (Cities Alliance), and Eric Mackres (World Resources Institute), Angel and the team helped Malawian officials build the capacity to plan for urban expansion over the next several decades. After initial training from an online course, developed by Professor Angel in collaboration with C40’s Knowledge Hub, participants developed draft expansion plans for Malawi’s three largest cities. A plan of action for officials includes outreach to stakeholders and the general public to increase awareness and popularize urban-expansion planning, an examination of modifications to land-use-planning regulations, and implementation of three pilot projects in Malawi’s largest cities. The delegation will use the draft plans for planning growth of Malawi’s cities, which are projected to more than double in population by 2050.

Co-sponsored by: NYU Marron Institute Urban Expansion Program and NYU Africa House

Photos courtesy of Marron Institute