Kigali, Enugu And The African Cities On The World’s Most Resilient 100

December 15, 2014 Niyi Aderibigbe Economic Development & Policies, Lists

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City Resilience is the capacity of individuals, communities, institutions, businesses, and systems within a city to survive, adapt, and grow no matter what kinds of chronic stresses and acute shocks they experience.
VENTURES AFRICA – Four African countries have been selected to join 100 Resilient Cities – cities who have demonstrated a commitment to building their own capacities to navigate the shocks and stresses of an increasingly complex 21st Century.
Accra (Ghana), Enugu (Nigeria), Kigali (Rwanda) and Arusha (Tanzania) were selected with 31 others globally to benefit from the support of 100 Resilient Cities (100RC) – Pioneered by the Rockefeller Foundation, as they work towards becoming more resilient to the physical, social and economic challenges faced by cities globally.
“During our first 18 months, we’ve seen our first cohort of
cities mature, appoint chief resilience officers, and embark on their own resilience strategy processes,” 100RC said in a statement. “No doubt this momentum contributed to the immense response we saw to the second round of the 100 Resilient Cities Challenge has been enormous, with 331 exceptional applications from cities around the world, submitted in seven languages.
Accra, Arusha, Enugu, Kigali To Enjoy support
However, the four African cities showed enough commitment to resilience and will now enjoy financial and logistical guidance for establishing an innovative new position in city government, a Chief Resilience Officer, who will lead the city’s resilience efforts; expert support for development of a robust resilience strategy; access to solutions, service providers, and partners from the private, public and NGO sectors who can help them develop and implement their resilience strategies; and membership of a global network of member cities who can learn from and help each other.
Selection process
“Each city was asked to present a clear and compelling description of their major resilience challenges, how they are approaching and planning for resilience to decrease vulnerabilities, and how they plan to partner with us,” 100RC disclosed.
“After exhausting review of the applications, a panel of esteemed judges including African Develoment Bank President Donald Kaberuka, President and CEO of the Asia Society Josette Sheeran, and former President of Costa Rica José María Figueres, recommended the next set of 35 member cities.”
Accra, Enugu, Kigali and Arusha will join Dakar, capital of Senegal and Durban, South Africa, the two African cities that were selected in the first round.