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This article explores how rural settlements urbanise, and how rural governance transforms in the process. The question is motivated by the significant contribution that smaller urban centres are projected to make to the world's future urban growth, the majority of which will occur in the global South. Many smaller centres are emerging through in situ urbanisation, wherein a rural settlement becomes urban. Given the importance of small town growth, the article proposes a comparative research agenda with the aim of exploring and comparing the institutional transformations occurring in 'transitional spaces', the governance complexities these transformations present and the consequences for establishing urban planning systems in historically rural settlements. The agenda is operationalised in sub-Saharan Africa through a case study of Karonga Town, an emerging urban centre in Malawi. The agenda draws on a varied body of case-study research on small town growth and rural transformation in sub-Saharan Africa generally and Malawi specifically. The agenda has the potential to make a significant contribution to the literature seeking to reveal the informality in different governance landscapes and the forms of urbanisation in which these landscapes are embedded in sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explains the methods that were used to study environmental health problems in Karonga, a rapidly growing secondary urban centre in Malawi. The study used existing information from hospital records and consulted local health officials and academics on how best to use it. The aim was to position the hospital as a disease surveillance site by using its records to generate disaggregated health data at the intra-urban scale. This paper identifies the strengths and limitations of using hospital data to inform joint urban planning and public health interventions. It also provides a summary of the key findings, including a discussion of the implications for enhancing urban health intelligence and urban policy formulation in Malawi and other rapidly urbanizing countries. This paper is intended to show researchers how existing information in low-resource settings can be used to generate needed health data for urban populations, with a particular interest in secondary centres. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many African towns and cities face a range of hazards, which can best be described as representing a "spectrum of risk" of events that can cause death, illness or injury, and impoverishment. Yet despite the growing numbers of people living in African urban centres, the extent and relative severity of these different risks is poorly understood. This paper provides a rationale for using a spectrum of methods to address this spectrum of risk, and demonstrates the utility of mixed‐methods approaches in planning for resilience. It describes activities undertaken in a wide‐ranging multi‐country programme of research, which use multiple approaches to gather empirical data on risk, in order to build a stronger evidence base and provide a more solid base for planning and investment. It concludes that methods need to be chosen in regard to social, political economic, biophysical and hydrogeological context, while also recognising the different levels of complexity and institutional capacity in different urban centres. The paper concludes that as well as the importance of taking individual contexts into account, there are underlying methodological principles – based on multidisciplinary expertise and multi‐faceted and collaborative research endeavours – that can inform a range of related approaches to understanding urban risk in sub‐Saharan Africa and break the cycle of risk accumulation. Many African towns and cities face a range of hazards, which can best be described as representing a "spectrum of risk" of events that can cause death, illness or injury, and impoverishment. This paper provides a rationale for using a spectrum of methods to address this spectrum of risk, and demonstrates the utility of mixed‐methods approaches in planning for resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper underscores the need for detailed data on health and disaster risks for sub-Saharan African cities, particularly for their informal settlements. Systems that should contribute to the information base on health and health risks in each locality are rarely functional. In most cities, there is a lack of data on health risks, health outcomes, and health determinants; where data are available, they are usually too aggregated to be useful to urban governments. Such data shortfalls likely hide the scale of premature death, serious illness, and injury in informal settlements; limited data can also curtail the identification of particularly vulnerable urban residents. After outlining data shortfalls, this paper considers two sources of data that can help fill data gaps on health and health determinants. The first is from city case studies undertaken within a research programme called Urban Africa: Risk Knowledge (Urban-ARK). Urban-ARK's findings reveal the large spectrum of health risks in informal settlements, ranging from 'everyday' risks (e.g. infectious and parasitic diseases) to small- and larger-scale disasters. The second is from data collected by slum/shack dweller federations, which offer qualitative and quantitative findings on health, disasters, and other health determinants in informal settlements. Our conclusion reflects upon the need for additional data on multiple risks to advance urban health and well-being and support the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It also highlights the need to strengthen accountable urban governance in sub-Saharan Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The projected impacts of climate change are likely to reverse social and economic development in sub-Saharan Africa, exacerbating the challenges of advancing sustainable development and meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Given the rapid and widespread urbanization occurring throughout sub-Saharan Africa, in particular Malawi, these challenges will be increasingly concentrated in cities. However, climate change and sustainable development policies in Malawi focus largely on rural areas. As a consequence, the new environmental and demographic challenges facing cities and the clear and immediate need for spatial planning are not addressed. This paper draws on current literature to make the linkages between climate change adaptation and spatial planning and to investigate the potential of densification and disaster risk management as adaptation measures. However, policy gaps, the acute shortages of trained land professionals and arrested political decentralization remain significant challenges for policy implementation. The recommendations outlined in this paper are intended to inform more appropriate adaptations over the long term by identifying where further research is required and by identifying specific actions that can be taken by policymakers to improve Malawi''s planned adaptation in urban areas. Due to the lack of research that exists on climate change adaptation from an urban perspective in Malawi, this paper is intended to provoke wider discussions of this subject across the planning, development and environmental management community. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Purpose: Empirical evidence suggests that climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices will promote resilience against climate change. We explored location-specific CSA practices and strategies for adoption in two communities (Zango and Kofa) in the North-Western Nigerian drylands. Design/methodology/approach: Mixed methods design was employed with thirty smallholders per community selected from a baseline study of 220 smallholders from the two study communities. Smallholders were engaged in a farmer participatory learning and action (PLA) on CSA adoption for resilience. Impacts of PLA were evaluated six months post-implementation and barriers for adoption explored. Findings: Pre- and post-PLA training indicated a change in confidence to adopt some CSA practices. Both communities showed greater confidence (p <.05) related to solving climate-related problems and the use of fertiliser. Communities differed in relation to other factors: Kofa exhibited improved confidence (71.4%) in solving water challenges while Zango showed greater confidence (76%) in relation to solving environmental problems. We found gender-responsive CSA promote women participation in farming. Practical implications: A deep understanding of the underlying reasoning behind non-adoption of CSA practices could support future climate resilience policies, and the lead-farmer extension model could reduce extension agent-farmer ratio. Theoretical implications: Identification of climate-smart agriculture practices and their adoption confirms the benefit of participatory learning for transformation, in this case, empowerment of smallholders, including women, to adapt to climate change in a wider sub-Saharan Africa context. Originality/value: This study explores PLA application in supporting the uptake of CSA practices for resilience and advancement of lead-farmer extension for reducing extension agent-farmer ratio. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]