STATE OF THE WORLD'S CITIES 2012/2013 Prosperity

State of the World’s Cities 2012/2013
Box 2.2.1
Ranking of Urban Infrastructure
UN-Habitat survey experts report that across all developing
regions the least developed components of urban infrastructure
relate to recreation, sanitation and urban transport, while the
most developed is telecommunications; all of this has important
implications for urban prosperity. For instance, the low priority
Ranking
ranking
5.0
most developed
least developed
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0
Water
Sanitation
Electricity
Telecommunications
Transport infrastructure
Recreation
Water
Sanitation
Electricity
Telecommunications
Transport infrastructure
Recreation
regarding the coverage and quality of urban infrastructure.
These differences are discussed below with respect to water,
roads and ICTs.
Trends in Road Infrastructure
The road network will rank amongst any city’s most prized
assets, as it facilitates the movement of people and goods.
Apart from access, road networks also form the basic grid
for trunk infrastructure for water, sanitation and power
supplies. Roads also contribute to effective mobility, which
is crucial for the prosperity of cities. Congested roads
and poor facilities for pedestrians are the most pervasive
transport problems affecting cities in developing countries.
The UN-Habitat survey shows that to a large majority
of experts – 96 per cent in Africa; 91 per cent in Asia;
88 per cent in Latin America; and 80 per cent in Arab
states – traffic congestion is the main form of infrastructure
deficiency plaguing cities in those regions, hindering
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given to recreational infrastructure implies that access to public
spaces in many cities is limited, as indicated in Chapter 2.3
(Quality of Life). Similarly, the low priority given to urban transport
has wider-ranging implications, in this case for intra- and interurban
mobility.
Africa Asia LAC Arab States All regions
Source: UN-Habitat, City Monitoring Branch, Policy Survey,
Water
Sanitation
Electricity
Telecommunications
Transport infrastructure
Recreation
free movement and making travel frustrating and time-
consuming. 14
Water
Sanitation
Electricity
Telecommunications
Transport infrastructure
Recreation
Water
Sanitation
Electricity
Telecommunications
Transport infrastructure
Recreation
Road infrastructure remains poor in African cities:
In most African cities, roads account for less than
seven per cent of land area, compared with 25–30 per cent
in developed cities. 15 In cities such as Kinshasa, Kampala
and Ouagadougou, paved roads account for less than
12 per cent of the whole urban network. In many cities, the
road network has barely
kept pace with urban
growth: in Douala, for
instance, it has remained
unchanged for the past 20
years despite a doubling of
the population, increased
numbers of vehicles,
and urban sprawl. 16 FACT
The
dysfunctional nature of
Road
congestion,
poor facilities for
pedestrians, power
outages and flooding
are major infrastructural
deficiencies, and thus
adversely affect the
prosperity of cities.