Improved planning can reduce disaster risks in African cities – SU professor

Urban risk management in African must improve to make cities on the continent less vulnerable against increasing droughts, wildfires, flooding and food insecurity, Dr Ailsa Holloway, Director of DiMP (Disaster Mitigation for Sustainable Livelihoods Programme) at Stellenbosch University (SU) said recently. She delivered a keynote address at the 4th Africa Regional Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction held in Arusha, Tanzania from 13-15 February 2013. Holloway said urban fire remains a poorly understood and weakly managed risk across the continent, while new forms of rising floods occur in our growing cities due to unplanned settlement and weak urban infrastructure. She added that food insecurity in cities generates multiple challenges, including social mobilization and unrest. Read more Related article