Search

Begin New Search Topic Cities Publishing Institution Urban Institute

1. Digital payments in transportation can help developing cities drive economic growth

Author:
Ammar A. Malik
Publication Date:
12-2018
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Over the next decade, cities in developing markets will drive global economic expansion. McKinsey predicts that 440 cities in emerging markets will generate half of all growth through 2025. To realize the potential of urbanization, developing cities need to become denser, easier to navigate, and more adept at using data to deliver public services. Inefficient public transit has posed a significant challenge to urban areas around the world. 1.2 billion trips are made using public transit every day, but the share of trips via public transit has declined in developing cities from 35.5 percent in 1995 to 23.7 percent in 2012.
Topic:
Development, Economic Growth, Cities, and Digital Policy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

2. Displacement and Disconnection? Exploring the Role of Social Networks in the Livelihoods of Refugees in Gaziantep, Nairobi, and Peshawar

Author:
Loren Landau, Kabiri Bule, Ammar A. Malik, Caroline Wanjiku-Kihato, Yasemin Irvin-Erickson, Benjamin Edwards, and Edward Mohr
Publication Date:
06-2017
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Building on original quantitative and qualitative fieldwork in three refugee hosting cities – Nairobi, Gaziantep, and Peshawar—this study explores the role of social networks in furthering or hampering displaced persons’ ability to achieve self-reliance. Experiences are diverse, but several general findings emerge: (1) Group membership is remarkably low; (2) Social networks are an invaluable asset for many but are either unavailable or a hindrance for others; (3) The in-group networks that initially offer protection become less effective in the long-term; and (4) Economic security is closely depending on people’s ability to forge connections beyond co-nationals.
Topic:
Immigration, Governance, International Development, Urban, and Cities
Political Geography:
Pakistan, Kenya, Africa, South Asia, Turkey, Middle East, Nairobi, Gaziantep, and Peshawar

3. Mapping the Structure of Well-Being and Social Networks of Refugees

Author:
Ammar A. Malik, Edward Mohr, Yasemin Irvin-Erickson, Loren Landau, Caroline Wanjiku-Kihato, and Benjamin Edwards
Publication Date:
06-2017
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Despite strong ethnic, linguistic and religious similarities with host communities, the presence of Afghan refugees since the 1970s has fundamentally altered Peshawar’s social fabric. Using an original household survey, we explore the structures and forms of refugees’ social networks and their relationship with economic well-being. We find that refugees maintain networks both within refugee and host communities, gaining critical help in finding jobs and housing, besides financial and emotional support. We recommend strengthening refugees’ capacity to self-organize via community-based interventions and clarifying the future of their legal status in Pakistan.
Topic:
Immigration, Refugees, International Development, Displacement, and Cities
Political Geography:
Pakistan, Afghanistan, South Asia, and Peshawar

4. A tale of two cities: Why there is no “one solution” to combating spousal abuse

Author:
Ammar A. Malik and Jared Stolove
Publication Date:
08-2017
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
The World Health Organization has identified Southeast Asia as the region of the world with the highest rates of domestic violence, with 37.7 percent of women experiencing spousal abuse. This troubling statistic deserves the attention of policymakers and nongovernmental organizations looking to reduce domestic abuse. But those designing interventions should not treat this region as a monolith. Recent research has highlighted that domestic violence is the result of community- and individual-level factors. Although certain socioeconomic groups, such as the impoverished and the poorly educated, are generally more likely to be the victims of domestic violence, the factors that put individual women at risk of abuse vary across communities. Policymakers aiming to reduce spousal violence must be conscious of local context when designing interventions. Otherwise, policymakers risk using valuable resources on ineffective projects that do not address the root causes of domestic violence. Recent fieldwork by the Urban Institute profiles how different the causes of domestic violence can be, even among similar socioeconomic groups.
Topic:
Women, Gender Based Violence, Cities, and Domestic Violence
Political Geography:
Pakistan, South Asia, and India

5. Dynamic Cities? The Role of Urban Local Governments in Improving Urban Service Delivery Performance in Africa and Asia

Author:
Jamie Boex, Ammar A. Malik, Devanne Brookins, and Ben Edwards
Publication Date:
07-2016
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Cities are engines of economic growth that provide spaces for social transformation and political inclusion. Their ability to deliver widely accessible and efficiently functioning public services drives productivity and sustains development. We design and apply an assessment framework to 42 cities in 14 African and Asian countries to better understand the functional, administrative, and political dimensions determining the quality and coverage of water, sanitation, and solid waste collection services. We find that urban local governments are constrained in their authority and discretion to deliver basic public services. Reforming intergovernmental institutional structures to better match responsibilities is essential for realizing cities’ full economic potential.
Topic:
Government, Water, Governance, International Development, Economic Growth, Urban, Sanitation, Services, and Cities
Political Geography:
Africa, Asia, and Global Focus

6. Becoming Urban Humanitarians: Engaging Local Government to Protect Displaced People

Author:
Loren Landau, Caroline Wanjiku-Kihato, Jean Pierre Misago, and Benjamin Edwards
Publication Date:
09-2016
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
People displaced into urban areas due to war, persecution, or climatic crisis have claimed an increasingly prominent position in humanitarian operations and research. Through an examination of three African municipalities currently hosting displaced persons we study the cognitive, financial, and political incentives that work for and against a proactive response to displacement. We find that in cities where deprivation is widespread, effective engagement with municipal authorities demands a shift in approach. Rather than appeals to domestic or international protection principles, effective engagement with local authorities requires recognizing local authorities’ interests and incentives to develop strategies to align protection concerns with local political economic factors.
Topic:
Economics, Humanitarian Aid, Displacement, Urban, and Cities
Political Geography:
Uganda, Kenya, Africa, and South Africa

7. Women’s Economic Empowerment: A Review of Evidence on Enablers and Barriers

Author:
H. Elizabeth Peters, Nan Marie Astone, Ammar A. Malik, Fenohasina Rakotondrazaka Maret, and Caroline Heller
Publication Date:
10-2016
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Besides human rights protection and social welfare improvement, fostering female participation in the economy can stimulate growth with human capital accumulation and enhance the competitiveness of businesses. But women face many barriers to participating in the labor market, particularly in high productivity sectors, due to limited investments in education, time burdens from care responsibilities, legal prohibitions to land ownership, and sexual harassment and violence. We find evidence that improving access to infrastructure and public services, reforms in inheritance laws, family friendly workplace policies, and reduction in levels of violence can significantly improve women’s economic empowerment.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Labor Issues, Women, International Development, Economic Growth, and Cities
Political Geography:
Global Focus

8. Women in Pakistan's Urban Informal Economy

Author:
Ammar A. Malik, Hadia Majid, Husnain Fateh, and Iromi Perera
Publication Date:
01-2016
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
In rapidly urbanizing developing countries, the prevalence large-scale informality within urban economies increases social vulnerabilities, stifles worker productivity and dampens regional economic growth. With the prospect of better jobs attracting millions into cities each year, rising urban poverty levels are encouraging international nonprofits to allocate greater resources toward urban programs. Our fieldwork in Pakistan reveals that above all else, urban informal workers require improvements in public service delivery, skillset development and collective bargaining capacity. We propose implementing future urban programs through an iterative learning, adaptation and implementation approach allowing nonprofits to leverage greater impact from finite resources.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Labor Issues, Women, Income Inequality, International Development, Economic Growth, Family, and Cities
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia

9. A Political Economy Framework for the Urban Data Revolution

Author:
Benjamin Edwards, Solomon Greene, and G. Thomas Kingsley
Publication Date:
04-2016
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
As the global population grows increasingly urbanized, city governments will assume ever-greater responsibility for addressing the challenges of poverty, inequality, and environmental sustainability. To meet these challenges effectively, city leaders must base their efforts on good data and reliable evidence. This paper develops a framework for understanding the conditions under which city leaders access, analyze, and apply data to solve problems. We also suggest how the new UN Sustainable Development Goals can help overcome the institutional constraints and competing incentives that cities face in using data to drive decisionmaking for sustainable development.
Topic:
Urbanization, Sustainable Development Goals, International Development, and Cities
Political Geography:
United Nations and Global Focus

10. Will the cities of the future work for everyone?

Author:
Solomon Greene and Sarah Rosen Wartell
Publication Date:
10-2016
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
A century ago, 1 in 10 people lived in urban areas; today, it’s more than half. By 2050, that fraction will rise to two thirds of the world’s population as cities of all sizes swell to accommodate an estimated 2.5 billion more urban dwellers. What will cities look like in the future? Next week, researchers from the Urban Institute will join global leaders at the United Nations’ historic Habitat III conference to take stock of our progress in creating sustainable cities that meet the needs of all residents, and to get ahead of anticipated changes that will create both opportunities and challenges for city dwellers, our nations, and our planet.
Topic:
Development, Urban, and Cities
Political Geography:
Global Focus