Seeing self-help urban design as a social movement in the global south: A case in Accra, Ghana

Abstract

The literature on urban design has surged to differentiate two groups of practitioners: the “knowing” (self-conscious) urban designer (people who see themselves in such a role) and the “unknowing” (unself-conscious) urban designer (people who do not see themselves in such a role). Both contribute to the making, utilisation, and transformation of places. However, the latter has yet to be adequately explored, partly the drivers behind the ongoing practices. A growing scholarship has been developed in the Global South to address such a direction, considering that the urban theory, spatial logic, and design process differ between the Global North and South. The implications of urban design practices and the role of urban designers are complex to clarify, especially considering the vast self-help activities seen in the Global South. This paper engages with such a conversation and suggests self-help urban design in informal settlements (public spaces planned, constructed, maintained, and replanned by the residents) to be perceived as a form of social movement that practitioners can not manage and predict. This paper utilises an ethnographic approach to contextualise a case in Accra, Ghana, to support the above argument. We stress this understanding, which has yet to be explored in the literature, with implications to help urban designers rethink their roles in placemaking and cope with local social movements for positive outcomes in the Global South.