The Africa Urban Lab (AUL), a collaborative initiative established by the African School of Economics (ASE) and the Charter Cities Institute (CCI), with support from UN-Habitat (UN-H), will host an engaging side event for urban leaders attending the Africa Urban Forum in Addis Ababa on the critical role of capacity building and quality education in harnessing the benefits of urbanization for African cities. The event will take place at 07:30 EAT in Room AUF3. Attendees can register through this link.
The side event will begin with an introduction to AUL’s structure and mission by AUL founder and Director Kurtis Lockhart, followed by a presentation on the need for capacity building led by UN-Habitat’s Director Regional Office for Africa Oumar Sylla. The session will then transition into a participatory workshop and panel discussion focusing on the challenges, opportunities, and future of capacity building in urbanization, led by esteemed Professor and ASE founder, Leonard Wantchekon and moderated by Heba Elhanafy, Urban Researcher at CCI. The session will examine the role of urban labs, universities, and innovative educational approaches in capacitating Africa’s future leaders and change-makers.
The organizers invite all urban leaders to join this engaging discussion on the critical role
of capacity building and quality education in harnessing the benefits of urbanization for African
Cities. Additionally, the session aims to establish a task force to continue these discussions on a regular basis, ensuring ongoing follow-up on the session’s resolutions. AUL will publish the insights and outcomes from this participatory workshop and will inform the lab’s future development. The outcomes will also guide the African Urban Futures (AUF) initiative in shaping future capacity-building efforts.
The AUL, with a mission to tackle the challenges of rapid urbanization across Africa and to train the next generation of city builders, planners, and urban leaders to leverage urban growth for human prosperity, will launch its first courses in November 2023, starting with a Professional Development Course in Urban Development. The AUL was made possible in part through the support of Grant 63321 from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed by the AUL do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.
