Peri-urbanization as “Quiet Encroachment” by the middle class. The case of P&T in Greater Accra

Bibliographic Data

ID11670556
AuthorsLara Bartels (0000-0002-1426-6892, Universität Trier, corresponding author), Lara Esther Bartels (Universität Trier)
Year2019
Volume41
Issue4
Pages524-549
Publication date2019-09-30
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueUrban Geography (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0272-3638 • E-ISSN: 1938-2847
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/02723638.2019.1664810
OpenAlexW2978890575
LanguageEN
Citations received25
References cited43

Informal settlements are often equated with slums emerging at urban fringes and inhabited by the poor. This article contributes to revising this common narrative by drawing on rich empirical material about the involvement of the middle class in constructing P&T, an informal, peri-urban settlement in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area (GAMA), Ghana. Drawing on the concept of “quiet encroachment”, it is shown that the non-collective and quiet practices of encroaching illegally onto State land is an ordinary practice of the middle class to acquire land for shelter in P&T. The middle class can draw on various practices and mechanisms to consolidate their “quiet encroachment”. It is argued that through such practices, the middle class shapes the processes of (informal) peri-urbanization in the GAMA. The article calls for further empirical studies on informal peri-urban settlements constructed by the middle class to deepen the understanding of inequalities embedded in (informal) peri-urbanization

Class (philosophy · Economic geography · Economic growth · Economics · Geography · Peri · QUIET · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Urbanization · Land Rights and Reforms · Medicine · Urban and Rural Development Challenges · Urban Planning and Governance · Internal Medicine

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