Global Cities-Local Identity?

In the 21st century, metropolises on the African continent are undergoing rapid and uncontrolled growth threatening what is left of their specific identity in a juxtaposed process of globalisation and rural-urban migration. Can we grasp the cultural identity of these heterogeneous urban spaces? What significance does the colonial past of these cities have for their present? Has not, unnoticeably, the rapid urban development already fostered an independent and specific movement beyond the conventional understanding of history and preservation? These issues were raised and discussed by international experts, local authorities, planners and artists at the international symposium GLOBAL CITY–LOCAL IDENTITY? held in 2011 by the Goethe-Institut Tanzania in Dar es Salaam. The symposium contributions selected for this publication provide a broad perspective of questions emerging metropolises in Sub-Saharan Africa are confronted with today. They shed light on the topic from different perspectives and from the smaller architectural to the larger urban scale. Looking into their ambiguous past, describing their dynamic present, and discussing possible directions for their future, the articles highlight these cities’ challenges as well as their untapped potential.