Urban Weakness and Security in Africa

Author(s): Arinze Ngwube

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Abstract:

In the 21st century one has witnessed the rate of urban movement which is attributed to many reasons such as social amenities, quest for good education and employment opportunities. However these factors are not peculiar to a particular country, but to the rest of the world .At present one has witnessed in the urban areas lack of social amenities, particularly in Africa. In the rural area there is epileptic power supply compare to the urban area. People need electricity for survival and this is responsible for relocation to the urban area. The same can be said about health care also, there are fewer numbers of hospitals and personnel in the rural areas. These makes access to health facilities difficult. As a result of this most people move to the urban cities. Another reason why people move from rural to urban is the quest for good education. In the rural area there are fewer no of schools and teachers, compare to urban area. The effect of these problems is that people tend to move from rural area to urban area; however it has not solved the problem of the urban area in terms of development.

These can be traced to urban weakness relating to weak and illegitimate governance, limited livelihood opportunities and legal structures that affect land tenure and new business startup .The antidote to Africa's urban weakness cannot rely on security structures but must be part of a broader development strategy.