Emerging disputes over land and leadership in urban villages on the airport reserve in Abidjan

Ittner, Irit
Externe Publikationen (2023)

in: Afrique Contemporaine 276, 175-201

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3917/afco1.276.0175
Information

The study focuses on growing land and leadership conflicts on the public domain of an expanding airport city. The ethnography shows the deep-rooted nature of these disputes and links them to the expropriation and sidelining of customary landowners in Abidjan. In order to regain visibility and political weight, and earn themselves a spot at negotiations on urban development, landowners have resorted to a performative form of land resource management. Political recognition and profit-sharing served as the main source of motivation. The housing shortage and competition between different levels of government have also had a major impact.