About the course

This MSc course will offer students the opportunity to learn some of the conceptual foundations and empirical regularities involved in studying why countries urbanise, the nature of structural and spatial transformation involved in the urbanisation process and the development of systems of cities. Complementing this will be a study of the internal spatial transformation of cities, the evolution of the location of production activities, the formation and role of slums, and the evolution of land market regulations and property right assignments. Critical to understanding these processes will be learning about the role of regulation and political processes, as well as policy initiatives, in shaping outcomes. The course will also examine the current process of urbanisation in Asia and Africa in the various special contexts of different regions and countries, drawing from lessons of the past as experienced in Latin America and parts of the developed world.