africa: The Primacy of Land Conflicts

Peri-urban areas in Southern and East Africa are characterised by: rapid change and spiraling socio-economic polarisation; divergent claims, competing interests and identities; and conflicts, disputes and tensions concerning the access, control and use of land resources. Research by South Bank University and African partners in the Urban and Peri-Urban Research Network (Peri-NET), shows that land resource based conflicts are critically important in peri-urban transformations – whether in Kampala, Lusaka, Nairobi, Durban or Johannesburg.