Author: arua

The Center for Federalism and Governance Studies (CFGS), established in 2006, is a Department within the College of Law and Governance Studies of Addis Ababa University. It was established with the vision to be a leading center of excellence in teaching, research and consultancy in multilevel government (federalism, devolution, good governance, local government) with a view to promoting unity in diversity, good governance, peace, development and regional integration in the Horn of Africa. 

The ARUA Water CoE aims to be a centre for innovative and progressive research, which focuses on the African response to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Water plays a vital role in ensuring equitable, stable and productive societies and functional ecosystems. Hence, the United Nations recognised ensuring sustainable management of water and sanitation as one of the seventeen sustainable development goals (SDGs) (i.e. Goal 6) (https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/). The CoE recognises that water is the key thread and catalyst to also realising the remaining sixteen SDGs in Africa.

The United Nations estimates that between 2015 and 2050, an additional 790 million people will reside in Africa’s urban areas. This implies that our Continent will play host to over 12 cities with between 5 to 10 million people by 2030, from three (Cairo, Kinshasa and Lagos) in 2014. The institutional capacity to cope with the attendant need for basic infrastructure, housing and social facilities for residents is already under considerable strain. This is evidenced by the relatively high percentage of African urban dwellers living in slum conditions-the UN Habitat projects that more than 50% of Africa’s population are likely to live in slums by 2025.

Measured in money terms, Africa is the most unequal of the continents. There is, however, huge variation in the magnitude, changes and texture of this inequality. For instance, the high aggregate figure is driven by the fact that seven of the 10 most unequal countries in the world are in Africa – and most of them southern Africa. However, if southern African countries (i.e. South Africa, Zambia and six smaller economies) are excluded, Africa has inequality levels comparable to developing countries in other parts of the world.