Drivers for urban green infrastructure development and planning in two Ethiopian cities: Bahir Dar and Hawassa

ABSTRACT

Urban green infrastructure is an approach to sustainable urban development. The aim of this research is to examine the drivers for urban green infrastructure development and planning in Bahir Dar and Hawassa cities in Ethiopia. Data was collected using focus group discussion, interview and observation. In this study, we concentrated on the main drivers for urban green infrastructure planning and development, environmental stewardship, spatial planning, economic development, policy issues, local/regional needs, stakeholders’ interest and strategies/action plans. The results show that, among the listed drivers, the top priority drivers in Bahir Dar are spatial planning, economic development and environmental stewardship. In Hawassa, these are similar although top is economic development and second is spatial planning followed by environmental stewardship.

KEYWORDS:

• Drivers for urban green infrastructure
• focus group discussion
• key informants
• practitioners
• urban development

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Addis Ababa University and University of Gondar for the financial support of this research for the first author.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. A stakeholder is an actor or a group of actors which affects or is affected by the phenomenon under study (Dooms et al., 2013; Li et al., 2013; Suskevics et al., 2013).

2. Woina-dega is a local term that defines mid-altitude climate.

3. Semi-structured interviews are a qualitative method of inquiry that combine a predetermined set of open questions (questions that prompt discussion) with the opportunity for the interviewer to explore particular themes or responses further. It does not limit respondents to a set of predetermined answers unlike structured interviews. These were carried out by selecting key informants from community elders, sub-city administrative officials, experts and mayor of the city.

4. The FGD is conducted based on semi-structured discussion guide prepared in advance and the views generated are recorded with audio and video because it helps to triangulate, supplement and enrich the results gained from other methods. Different scholars suggest various group sizes regarding FGD. For instance, 6–9 participants (Krueger, 1994, 1998), 6–10 participants (Morgan, 2007) and 6–12 participants (Johnson & Christensen, 2004) as the optimum size for FGD.

Additional information

Funding

The authors would like to thank Addis Ababa University and University of Gondar for the financial support of this research for the first author.

Notes on contributors

Kassahun Gashu

Kassahun Gashu is working at University of Gondar, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies. Currently, he is a PhD candidate at Addis Ababa University.

Tegegne Gebre-Egziabher

Tegegne Gebre-Egziabher is a professor of City and Regional Planning and he is working at Addis Ababa University, Department of Geography and Environmental studies and Center for Regional and Local Development Studies.

Molla Maru

Molla Maru is a senior lecturer in GIS and Remote sensing, Addis Ababa University, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies.