Street hawkers mill around following protests by shop owners that saw a lockdown of 1st Avenue, the heart of Eastleigh’s business hub and one of Nairobi’s thriving business centres. FILE PHOTO | NMG
For years, rural development dominated developing world economic discourse. Most of Africa’s population resided in the countryside and the agrarian economy was central to most economic activity. So the untapped potential of rural areas was central to most political and developmental narratives.
The socioeconomic role of cities and towns was often taken for granted in comparison — a proclivity that was in part due to the failed expectations that industry and urbanisation would catalyse modernisation during the years following Independence.
