Urbanization and Security in Africa: A Technological Perspective

Urbanization as a phenomenon has been evolving since man began his existence on planet earth. It has evolved from hamlets of the primitive era of civilization, through village clusters, micro-cities, cities to urban centers. The dynamics of change has been constant in the evolutionary trend of civilization, and of the growth of cities. The only deviation in the narrative of globalization and urbanization is that the developed cities of western world have always served as the case studies. This could be attributed to the fact that the West for example, laid better technological foundations that helped in the realization of their city development plans. The catch-up game has been the order of the day with African countries and cities. In examining the effects of a globalized and urbanized world, and its attendant security implications in Africa, this chapter, as a point of departure focuses on the technological dimension of this problem.