Winter School on Urban and Regional Economics in Africa

3 February 2025
Event type: Workshop
Event date: 9 June 2025, 8:00am
to 10 June 2025, 5:00pm

Hosted by: Economic Research South Africa (ERSA), International Growth Centre (IGC) and the World Bank.

Overview:
Join us for a two-day workshop focused on urban and regional economics in emerging economies of the Global South, with a focus on Africa. This Winter School aims to stimulate interest and deepen understanding of the economic dynamics of cities and urbanisation among young scholars and practitioners across Africa.

 Objectives:

  • To foster interest in urban and regional economic research among postgraduate students, early-career researchers, and practitioners in Africa.
  • To enhance awareness of the methods and scope of urban economics, particularly in the context of the Global South.

Preliminary Workshop Programme:

Day 1

Start End Description Speakers
08:30 09:00 Welcome Fouché Venter (Economic Research Southern Africa)
09:00 10:00 Contemporary Urbanisation in Africa Ivan Turok (Human Sciences Research Council)
10:00 11:00 Spatial inequality and Segregation Justin Visagie (Human Sciences Research Council)
11:00 11:30 Tea
11:30 12:30 Urban Labour Markets Andrew Kerr (Southern African Labour and Development Research Unit)
12:30 13:30 Lunch
13:30 14:30 Housing Allan Davids (University of Cape Town)
14:30 15:00 Tea
15:00 16:00 Cities and the Environment Kelsey Jack (UC Berkeley)

Day 2

Start End Description Speakers
08:45 09:00 Opening Remarks Victoria Delbridge (International Growth Centre
09:00 10:00 Land Issues in African Cities Harris Selod (World Bank)
10:00 11:00 Transportation Gabriel Kreindler (Harvard University)
11:00 11:30 Tea
11:30 12:30 Infrastructure and Service Delivery Matthew Turner (Brown University)
12:30 13:30 Lunch
13:30 14:30 Spatial Methods and Models Nick Tsivanidis (UC Berkeley)
14:30 15:00 Tea
15:00 16:00 Urbanisation and Development Ed Glaeser (Harvard University)
16:00 16:15 Conference closing and Feedback Fouché Venter, Economic Research Southern Africa 

Who Should Apply:

  • Target Audience:
    • PhD candidates, postdoctoral researchers (full- or part-time) and master’s students.
    • Practitioners with relevant experience in urban policy or related fields.
  • Selection Criteria:
    • Interest in urban and regional economics demonstrated through on-going research/policy experience or future research/career plans.
    • Preference for applicants with at least masters-level quantitative training or expertise.

Interested applicants are requested to register by completing the registration form below. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the workshop is full, with a final deadline of 28 February 2025 if capacity is not reached sooner. Application decisions will be communicated by Friday, 14 March.

Participant Support

  • Funding will be provided to support domestic travel and accommodation for workshop attendees from South African institutions. There is a possibility that funding will be available for international students.
  • Students are also encouraged to attend the 9th Urbanisation and Development Conference on 11-12 June 2025. Accommodation will be organised and funded for the duration of the conference for sponsored students.

For more information and registration details, contact Claudine Tshabalala (claudine@econrsa.org). 

We look forward to receiving your applications and welcoming you to an engaging and insightful workshop on urban and regional economics in Africa!

Related Event
Call for Applications: Winter School on Urban and Regional Economics in Africa
Deadline: 28 February 2025
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